


Infernal Machines

by katbear



Category: Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
Genre: Adventure, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-15
Updated: 2012-10-15
Packaged: 2017-11-16 08:14:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 49,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/537375
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katbear/pseuds/katbear
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Reluctant teacher and student must overcome their prejudices to work together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Infernal Machines

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks: To the beta readers who made this a better story (Bonny Magret, Merry Amelie).  
> Notes: Originally published in the ConStrict 2012 zine in July 2012. Thanks to Sian for keeping ConStrict going.  
> Art by Katbear.

 

  
<img src='http://katbear.dreamwidth.org/file/465.jpg' alt='title image for Infernal Machines story' title='Infernal_Machines' />

 

Q’Jenn’s mood was as gloomy as the gray day that dripped interminable rain from its overcast skies. Even his mount’s head drooped, weary from the quick pace of the three-day journey over a combination of muddy trails through dense woods and new paved roads. He trailed along near the rear of the group he had joined the previous night, all senior clan members being recalled from various positions throughout the vast Narelli forest.

“I hope this isn’t just another administrative drill because some important arsehole wants an audience,” muttered Q’Jenn as he shifted in the well-worn saddle. “I’ve got better things to do than play their silly political games.” His brown horse shook its head and snorted in seeming agreement, its white forelock flicking back over large pointed ears.

“If it is, the Spirit knows it must be a really important arsehole to pry you off a long-range patrol to join the rest of us.” The freckled visage of a middle-aged woman peered from under her cloak’s hood as her bay mare side-stepped closer to Q’Jenn. “Usually the only time they haul you in is when they’ve got a tough job somewhere else or you’ve pissed off another high-ranking snootnose tourist or government official.” Her wide grin betrayed the long friendship between the two.

“Very funny, D’Rala,” growled Q’Jenn. “I serve the will of the Spirit and go where it leads me. It’s not my fault others don’t always agree with that destination.”

“Or your interpretation of what the Spirit has to say.” A silvery laugh briefly lit the dreariness. D’Rala leaned over to poke her companion’s arm. “I really think you ought to consider putting in to serve a term on the clan council. Just imagine how much more interesting the meetings would be with you there to stir things up.”

“Spirit preserve me from such a fate, even though it’s hardly likely such a thing would ever get approved.” Q’Jenn shuddered so deeply that errant rain drops splattered off his cloak across both of them. He feigned a hurt tone of voice, “I thought you were my friend, you miserable scag.”

“I am, although I often wonder why given the amount of trouble you seem to attract. That doesn’t mean I don’t like to have some fun occasionally kicking holes in fusty bureaucracy.”

“And you call me a troublemaker?” Q'Jenn shook his head as he stood in his stirrups to stretch his long legs. “Ah, looks like we’ll be at the main complex shortly,” he said as he shielded his eyes with one hand to peer ahead. “I hope we at least have time for a hot meal and shower before the games start.”

“Aye, you’ve got my vote on that.”

*** *** ****

The group turned off the main road onto a service lane that looped around behind the huge multi-story main lodge that housed public guests with a small private section for the family of Mallen, Duke of K’Vangil, trustee of the linked holdings of Narelli and Givok, and one of the fifty-one major members of the World Council. Another mile of plodding through rapidly darkening woods brought them to a complex of buildings for administration, support, stables and lodging. A flock of energetic young people darted from a barn to meet the weary travelers.

“Service, sir,” bobbed a young man as he adroitly elbowed another out of the way. “May I take care of your horse, Senior Guardian Q’Jenn?”

“Service,” Q’Jenn automatically replied as he idly scanned the new faces, failing to recognize most of them. Must be a batch of new apprentices from down south, he thought to himself as he dismounted and took a moment to adjust his knife and sword under his cloak. He looked the leggy youngster over for a moment before handing over the reins. “Very well. His name’s Montel and we’ve been on the road three days. He needs a good rubdown and take special care with his feet. He’s a bit touchy about his left hind.”

“Aye, sir, I’ve heard about Montel and I’ll take good care of him. Shall I get your gear for you?”

“No, that’s alright.” Q’Jenn untied his saddlebags and pulled them off. He slung them and the case with his bow and quiver over his shoulder, then scratched behind Montel’s ears for a moment. “Be good for – " he glanced at the young man.

“Jok Gurtar, sir.”

Q’Jenn nodded, turned back to the horse. “Be good for Jok, none of your silly games now.”

Montel whickered softly and rubbed his head against Q’Jenn’s arm, although there was a small gleam in his eye as he glanced at the apprentice eagerly waiting to take him in out of the wet.

“Be firm with him and you’ll get along fine, Jok,” said Q’Jenn. “Thank you for your service.”

“My pleasure, sir.” Jok took the reins and led the horse away, casting a small triumphant glance at the sour-faced apprentice he had elbowed earlier.

“Seems your reputation among our younger people is still intact,” murmured a droll voice at Q’Jenn’s shoulder.

Without turning, Q’Jenn started for the lodgings. “Reputations can be useful occasionally, my dear. Last one to the showers gets the cold water.”

 

*** *** ***

A hot shower, good meal and clean clothes greatly improved Q’Jenn’s mood. His rank and the longer missions he had managed to get these last few years at Narelli entitled him to a permanent small room rather than a dormitory or shared room where most of the other single members resided. For a moment, he considered simply retiring early, but decided instead that he wanted more information about the rumors and conjectures that had swirled around the communal dining room. Q’Jenn tied back his shoulder-length hair and donned a dry cloak before stopping by the stable, grateful the rain had stopped, to check on Montel. Technically, the horse belonged to the clan, not him, but the wily and stubborn beast allowed few others to ride him, so Q’Jenn had ended up with a steady trail companion for his forest missions. He found Montel in good hands, warm, well-groomed, and from the smirk on his face probably stuffed with more grain than was really good for him. Q’Jenn spent a few minutes chatting with Jok, rewarding him with a few avidly received tidbits about some of his previous missions, then headed back.

Overhead, the late spring weather was changing swiftly as a high wind broke up the cloud cover and a few stars began peeking through. There was still a briskness in the air that Q’Jenn welcomed after the closeness and heat of the many stabled mounts. He paused to savor the smells and sounds of the evening. The Narelli forest support complex and its outlying stations were the home base for those who lived and worked there, mostly members of the Jedeen clan, and for many years it had been his home more often than even the clan’s main holdings far to the south. As an unattached Jedeen Senior Guardian, of course, he was called upon to perform many tasks and travelled often, whether it involved mediation, law enforcement, official witness, or myriad other duties requiring his special skills and trusted status, but he always enjoyed coming back to Narelli, where he could also indulge his love of the outdoors while helping to preserve and protect this unique resource.

“Q’Jenn!” a gruff voice called. “Always the difficult one to find you are! Come inside and let us speak.”

As he turned, a smile spread wide on Q’Jenn’s face at the familiar voice. “Y’Dan! It is good to see you, sir.” His voice was warm with genuine regard for the Jedeen senior counselor who had taken in the scrawny young orphan and raised him to manhood. “But I am surprised to see you here. I thought the council was still reviewing the major contract renewals? And deciding on who to send to represent the clan at the legislative sessions this year?”

“E’Pell will speak for the clan; he has already left for the capital.” As one of the most ancient clans and the only one which maintained a tradition of a neutral communal service mission, the Jedeen had been the first to be unanimously granted a voting membership among the clans, free cities and major fiefdoms when the last decimating wars had ended over two centuries earlier and the weary survivors had come together to form a single union. “Look out for our interests he will.”

“I’ve no doubts about that,” chuckled Q’Jenn. “He could face down a raging bull and then talk it to sleep.”

“More respect you should have.” As they moved indoors, the lights revealed Y’Dan to be half of Q’Jenn’s towering height, with a deeply lined face and sparse white hair. The sparkle in his green eyes belied the rebuke.

Q’Jenn’s reply was forestalled as a young girl came trotting up and bowed to them. “Service, sirs. Counselor M’Indu requests that you join him in the community room.”

“Service,” replied Y’Dan gravely. “Please tell him we are on our way.”

“Yes, sir.” The girl bowed and trotted back down the long hallway.

“Two counselors here? And it’s not time for a visit or inspection?”

“You have not heard of the K’Vangil tragedy, then?”

“No, sir. I was called in from a long-range patrol tracking smugglers to come directly here.” Q’Jenn shook his head. “I’ve not had access to news reports or any communications. There were a lot of rumors about possible ducal family problems amongst the others I met on the road and in the dining hall, but nothing specific.”

“Ah, let us wait until the meeting to discuss this. No point in doing this twice.”

“Yes, sir.” As they walked together, Q’Jenn spoke up again. “Y’Dan, if I may, there is a different issue we can talk about since you’re here.”

“Yes?”

“I’ve mentioned this in some of my recent reports, but I believe all these new paved roads the Duke’s son has insisted on putting into the forest are somewhat of a mixed blessing.” Q’Jenn carefully looked only straight ahead.

“Tol K’Sov represented his father’s interests and responsibilities as trustee for the Narelli and Givok linkage. Think you that something so costly would not have been approved by the Duke? Much money from the Givok profits has been spent to improve the roads here, told we were it would give better access and encourage more visitors.”

“Even with the relatively small portion of the proposed roadway network that has been installed, I haven’t liked the construction methods but have to agree that access is improved for everybody, including our support people. However, the damage from careless construction has been made worse because the improved access has been increasingly including more of those infernal smaller transporter vehicles, especially the new ones using some sort of oil derivative for fuel. They are noisy, waste resources and too many of the drivers speed recklessly without heed for the animals or other people.” Q’Jenn stopped and looked at the older Jedeen. “As for whether or not K’Sov had the Duke’s blessing, that is another issue altogether and outside my bounds of knowledge. Aside from the fact that he won’t talk to me because he doesn’t like me, I can’t honestly say one way or the other as K’Sov has not been here very much this last year to oversee anything or answer questions.”

“Very different problems seem to be troubling you, my son.” Y’Dan poked a finger at Q’Jenn’s middle. “Times are changing rapidly. New machines, new technology, these bother you?”

“Not the idea, sir. Not really. After all, some of our people are excellent engineers and have made great contributions. Innovations like the talking wires and the steam-driven ships have been tremendously helpful.” Q’Jenn shook his head. “But there is a time and proper place for everything and it’s the way some of this is being pushed forward here at the expense of the forest that I object to. One of the Jedeen’s greatest strengths has always been service guided by the Spirit, bringing harmony and peace for all life.” He lightly touched the sword at his side, a unique blade. It was lightweight yet strong and sharp; only the Jedeen smiths knew how to make them and only Guardians were allowed to use them. “When I took the clan oath in my eighteenth year, I pledged to give all to the clan and dedicated my life to serving in the name and light of the Spirit. Later, when I received my warrant as a Guardian, the Spirit sang within me and I vowed to work even harder.” Q’Jenn’s blue eyes grew darker with concern. “I have meditated a great deal on this matter, sir, and I believe my concerns are real. The damage I have seen… the heedlessly injured animals I have had to send on to the Spirit lately… these things trouble me a great deal.”

“Valid issues, my son,” said Y’Dan. “From others have we received some of the same complaints; M’Indu and I will be discussing the problem with F'Lor while we are here.” F’Lor was the senior Jedeen who managed the umbrella contract the Jedeen held for support of Narelli. The road construction was a special, short-term project, however, and the Jedeen had agreed to let another group have that work rather than have to invest in the special capabilities needed. “F’Lor has requested that we train some of our own people to maintain the new roads and likely it is the council will approve. Not to be discussed is that information.”

“Yes, sir, I understand. I doubt that will make the road crew very happy if they know they might not get the follow-on maintenance work. I appreciate the interest you are taking in this matter.”

“Indeed.” Y’Dan nodded. He waited a moment before continuing. “A concern you also have about the K’Vangil family?”

“It is perhaps not my place to speak as I don’t really have much official interaction with him and there are old issues behind K’Sov’s dislike of me…” Q’Jenn shrugged. “But I’m not the only one who has noticed that Tol K’Sov has been absent much more than usual this last year and has seemed… distracted… when he has been here.”

“Appreciate your concerns I do, but for now I must ask you to hold your silence a bit longer. You will understand why after the meeting.”

Q’Jenn nodded somberly. “I will take your counsel, sir. Thank you for listening to me, though.”

“Always you should feel free to ask questions,” Y’Dan’s smile shone in the dim light, “even though you may not always get answers you like.” He chuckled. “Questions are good, even when others might wish them to be unasked.”

“Yes, sir.” Q’Jenn smiled back, thinking of some of the many occasions when his own questions had definitely not been wanted, as they walked on in companionable silence.

A few minutes later the two men entered the community room. A very large, inviting area with comfortable chairs, tables, a fireplace in one wall and shelves of books, the atmosphere was bright and warm from the gas lighting recently installed. There were people still drifting in, so Q’Jenn sought out a seat as Y’Dan went to speak with F’Lor and M’Indu. He noticed that the gangly senior manager seemed more tired than usual, locks of whitening hair flopping down his forehead as he leaned in to speak to Counselor M’Indu.

“Hey, over here,” called D’Rala. She waved a hand.

Q’Jenn snagged a cup of tea from a side table and then gratefully slid into the space beside her on a small sofa. He nodded to S'Vano, the Senior Guardian who headed the permanent Guardian force at Narelli and supervised team leaders such as D’Rala. Three of S’Vano’s other senior team leaders sat on nearby chairs.

“Thanks, D’Rala. Do you know what's going on?”

“No. About twenty minutes ago, messengers started appearing with the meeting request. It must be pretty important, though, if there are two clan council members here.”

Q’Jenn glanced around, noticing many familiar faces in the room, almost all of them senior members of the various specialty teams or groups that were part of the Narelli support. Most of the people were Jedeen clan members, although not all were Jedeen blessed with the gift of the Spirit. The Jedeen were particularly well represented in those involved with the forest proper, such as the forestry and agriculture specialists, the wildlife and lake managers, engineers and the Guardians who handled enforcement and safety. The medical team were almost all Spirit-blessed Jedeen, which was not surprising given the distance to the nearest major hospital; they were recognized and highly valued throughout the planet for their remarkable skills. There was a large contingent of non-Jedeen who supported the lodge proper and much of the guest relations and entertainment. Their senior managers reported to F’Lor, but the Jedeen had found some very talented people who enjoyed the work and gave them a great deal of autonomy, an arrangement which had proved beneficial for all.

D’Rala noticed Q’Jenn’s survey of the room. “Birds of a feather flocking together, eh?” She smiled as she nodded toward the distinct groups, the non-Jedeen standing out in their brighter clothes from the Jedeen, the majority of whom tended toward earth colors in leather and linen. Even without the clothing, though, the Jedeen were all clearly marked by the clan knife each wore proudly on belt or in boot-top, a symbol that they had made the voluntary choice to become communal members and had sworn the clan oath, foregoing personal wealth for the good of the clan and pledging to serve until either their death or a severing of the oath. The clan provided for their needs as well as family members, those too young to take the oath and the many young people they fostered for training, using the cumulative wealth from various contracts and a world government stipend for unique services such as those provided by the Guardians. The clan also employed non-members on many of their contracts, work that was highly sought after because of the fair salaries and working conditions the Jedeen provided, but that didn’t mean that the two groups were always comfortable with each other.

M’Indu, Y’Dan and F’Lor moved near the large fireplace that was the center of one wall. They turned and faced the room, waited a moment, then M’Indu stepped forward, his tall, broad-shouldered presence commanding silence.

“Service,” he said with a bow, his deep voice carrying easily. His dark skin almost blended with the deep browns of his shirt and vest over leather pants and knee high boots.

Everyone stood up, bowed, murmured a chorus of “Service, sir.” There was a brief rustling as people sat down.

“Thank you all for gathering together this evening. I realize we have taken many of you away from your work, but there are some things we wanted to say to our senior Narelli team members in person.” M’Indu looked slowly around the room before continuing. “I want to emphasize the importance of our presence here – the Narelli support is not only one of our largest single efforts, but for most of our people it is also a labor of love and an honor to be part of sustaining and protecting this national treasure for all the people to be able to visit and enjoy. For our newer members, I will also remind you that the K’Vangil family has many blood ties to the Jedeen, some going back centuries, and they have been willing supporters of maintaining the Jedeen contract as steward of their responsibilities for the Narelli portion of the Narelli-Givok trusteeship. I bring these things up to point out the importance of our relationship to the K’Vangils, as there will be difficult times in the near future and the clan council wishes to ensure that we provide support to them as they have supported us.”

M’Indu stepped back as Y’Dan moved forward.

“For many months we have had concerns about the K’Vangil leadership here at Narelli. Complaints we have received about Tol K’Sov since he replaced Dok K'Vil after K’Vil’s unfortunate death the year before last. Senior Manager F’Lor has held fast against several demands he deemed inappropriate and conducted investigations,” said Y’Dan. “Council members have spoken to Duke Mallen about our concerns. Issues of his own he had, it seems, and he welcomed our help. Under the terms of the Narelli-Givok trusteeship his family holds, much profit he is allowed tax-free from the development and mining in Givok in return for subsidizing Narelli as a national resource. There are questions about the Givok funds that were sent to Narelli, how K’Sov was using them and certain other activities he was engaged in to make more money.”

A quiet murmur went around the room from those who had suspected and those who were surprised. In their corner, D’Rala and S'Vano exchanged glances as if confirming a previous conversation.

Y’Dan waited a moment, then went on. “His responsibilities the Duke takes very seriously, and expects no less he does from his family members. Tomorrow will Duke Mallen meet with several of us and what I am about to tell you will be announced officially. We now know why Tol K’Sov has spent so little of his time here at Narelli. Seeing many women he was; married were some of them, and pregnant one of them became. Last week, the husband of the pregnant lady took matters into his own hands and killed Tol K’Sov. News of this murder has been kept quiet until now, but will be in an official government news release in the morning.”

A burst of excited conversations flowed around the room.

Q’Jenn leaned in toward D’Rala and murmured, “All this might explain some of the problems you’ve been having in security.”

“Indeed,” D’Rala replied. “K’Sov was very upset when you brought in those illegal trophy hunters a few months ago. And I know there were some instances where it was ‘suggested’ that we might want to avoid patrols in certain areas.”

Y’Dan let the chatter continue for a few minutes before raising a hand for silence.

“This is all the information we have now, but when we know more pass it on we will. Expect the coming days to be difficult and hours to be long, but together we shall overcome the challenges ahead.” Y’Dan gestured to M’Indu, who took a sheet of paper from F’Lor.

“The Duke has asked that the initial meeting tomorrow be limited to a small number of participants.” M’Indu glanced at the sheet in his hand. “We would like the following people to join us in the lodge’s main conference room at tenth hour.”

Q’Jenn finished his tea as he listened to M’Indu call out names. All were very senior, with seldom more than one representative from each major function, although there were two engineers on the list in addition to F'Lor's Jedeen chief engineer L'Trecovo. When it became clear that M’Indu was nearing the end, he was surprised to hear his own name called in addition to S'Vano. Although he did have a great deal of seniority and was often tasked for missions at Narelli, he was an unattached Guardian reporting to the World Council and not part of the permanent Narelli attached Guardian contingent.

After the three senior Jedeen had left the room, Q’Jenn joined the group of Guardians surrounding S'Vano. He waited silently until S'Vano had finished giving his instructions and the others had departed.

“Seems like things are going to be pretty hectic around here for a while,” ventured Q’Jenn.

S'Vano snorted. “That’s an understatement,” he said sourly. “I suppose in one way it’s good that K’Sov is gone, given the problems he was causing, but I’m not looking forward to cleaning up the mess this has left.” He shook his head, then glanced around before continuing in a soft voice. “I don’t suppose you’ve had any more information out of Y’Dan? If he talks to anybody I would expect it to be you.”

“I’m afraid not. I only got to see him for a few minutes before the meeting and he wouldn’t talk about the K’Vangils.” Q’Jenn put a hand on S'Vano’s forearm. “From what was said by the counselors, it sounded to me like this was more of an internal problem for Narelli, so I don’t know why I was asked to attend the meeting tomorrow. You are the senior Guardian here, and I will respect that. Until I get a definite assignment elsewhere, just let me know what I can help with.”

S'Vano looked at Q’Jenn nad nodded. “Thanks, I appreciate that. There isn't really anything we can do tonight, so I'd suggest we get a good night's sleep and see what happens tomorrow."

"Aye, until tomorrow then." Q'Jenn smiled briefly, then took his leave.

*** ***

When Q’Jenn went in for his morning meal, the dining hall was buzzing with an almost palpable air of mixed excitement and wariness. He took his plate and cup of tea over to join several of the Narelli Guardians.

"Service," said Q'Jenn as he waited a moment for acknowledgement before sitting down.

"Service," chorused the other four occupants of the table. S'Vano and D'Rala were there along with two members of D'Rala's team, R'Vab and P'Tolo.

D'Rala plunged back into what was clearly an ongoing conversation. "We know the Duke wants family members running things if possible, so that limits the candidates. I'd be happy with any of the children of his first wife; they've all been very competent. After all, Dok K'Vil was the youngest of the boys but was doing a nice job until he got the lung disease. I bet his daughter would have been good, too, if she and her mother hadn't died in childbirth."

"You won't get Randel back here," S'Vano said authoritatively. "For years he's been groomed to succeed the Duke. He's already done a tour at both Givok and Narelli; now he's at the capital representing K'Vangil. And I highly doubt we'll see anything of Val K'Van – he's well settled at Givok and there's too much money and new development there to risk moving him."

"Yeah, that's how we ended up with Tol K’Sov in the first place after Dok K'Vil died," P'Tolo put in sourly. The young Guardian had caught the short end of some disputes with the unpopular K’Sov. "The Duke should have sent that worthless git packing when he divorced his mother."

There were several murmurs of agreement. The Duke's second wife had been the center of a storm of rumors about multiple affairs but the only real fact was that she had not contested the divorce, returning to her family without even the bridal dowry she had brought to the wedding.

"So that leaves us with the boy from his third wife, Ben K'ni?" P'Tolo put his cup down with a thump. "What do we know about him? Or maybe the Duke will spend some time here himself until things get sorted out?"

"He's hardly a boy," said Q'Jenn quietly. "He turned twenty-three last month. You probably haven't seen much of him because he's been helping at Givok since he finished his university courses a few years ago."

"Twenty-three? Blessed Spirit, has it really been that long?" S'Vano shook his head. "I was on my first tour at Narelli when they held the wedding here at the lodge. Beautiful little thing Belessa was that day. It was a pity, of course, that she had to give up her clan oath, but it was hardly the first time the K'Vangil's have brought in clan blood. It certainly hasn't hurt us in staying on the Duke's good side when business comes up."

"So that makes K'ni better than half Jedeen." D'Rala swirled her drink, a speculative expression on her face. "That could be a good thing for Narelli. Wonder if he's Spirit-blessed?"

"I've met him a few times, most recently two years ago when I was mediating a dispute in Givok," said Q'Jenn. "He definitely felt blessed, but I wouldn't count on him necessarily being interested in Narelli. He was a well-mannered young man but the only things he wanted to talk about were machines and the projects Val was having him work on."

"This could still get very interesting. If he really is blessed, I wonder who did the Spirit training for –" S'Vano broke off, stood and bowed slightly. "Service, F'Lor. What can we do for you?"

"Service. S'Vano, Q'Jenn, the counselors want to get our people together before the meeting so we can go in together, so you'll need to head to the lodge very soon."

"Of course," S'Vano replied. "Do we know who will be in the Duke's party?"

"For the meeting itself it looks like it will be the Duke, his youngest son, Ben K'ni, two each of his senior legal and financial people, his security chief and three engineers. The Duchess came with them yesterday as well as the rest of his support and security people, but I don't know if she'll be attending the meeting."

"Three engineers? Sounds like we're definitely going to be talking about much more than just whatever financial shenanigans K’Sov was up to," said S'Vano.

"I expect so." F'Lor raised an eyebrow. "If you haven't heard, the whole party came up from the lake port in machines rather than coaches. I take that to mean they're going to be interested in expanding the road network."

Q'Jenn was silent as the conversation continued for a few more moments, keeping his thoughts to himself. Although their paths seldom crossed, he had known the Duchess for many years and she was a staunch supporter of the Jedeen and Narelli; his meetings with her son had been even rarer and usually brief, his knowledge of the young man very limited. His impression had been that K'ni wasn't particularly enthusiastic about the Jedeen, or perhaps it was only some of the Jedeen policies; the young man had certainly been distant but also discreet, so it had been hard to tell anything except for his definite preference for engineering. Q'Jenn felt uneasy about the Senior Manager's comment, but he resolved to wait and see how things developed.

*** ***

Still uncertain about why he had been asked to attend, Q'Jenn willingly let S'Vano sit at the main table to represent the Guardians and took a seat along the wall. The conference room was quite large; two of the walls held outsize maps. One map showed the three major continents but little of the one immense ocean; there were several smaller seas and the continents were split by networks of rivers and lakes. The map also showed the political divisions of the fifty-one World Council members as well as the dozen or so trusteeships, eight of which were on the large central continent. The other map was of Narelli – a huge lake with several islands of various sizes ran across the middle, surrounded by two arms of vast forest with hills and mountains along the northern, eastern and part of the western borders. At the eastern end of the lake was a port structure which had long been the hub of the local transportation network. The main lodge overlooked the lake and port, while nine outlying stations spread across Narelli had various combinations of guest accommodations, support teams and security posts.

Q'Jenn surveyed the table as attendees were finding their seats. Mallen, broad-shouldered, a little above average height, commanded the room by virtue of competent self-assurance more than his hereditary authority as Duke of K'Vangil. In his mid-sixties, with short hair only just beginning to show traces of gray, he was highly successful, very popular and widely known for his insistence on fair and ethical dealing. At the moment he was chatting with Counselor M'Indu, but several times he glanced at the door. When a smile lit his face, Q'Jenn turned to see who had entered; he nodded to himself, letting a half smile linger on his own lips. He had seen that special expression before, and always it was reserved for just one person.

Twenty-five years ago Belessa, Duchess of K'Vangil, had been a Spirit-blessed Jedeen, a beautiful young woman serving the clan by learning forest and wildlife management in Narelli. Her long auburn hair, green eyes and bright smile had caught the eye of a man fishing on the shores of the lake one summer day when she was out gathering water samples. It was widely said that Mallen had lost his heart that day, victim at last to true love after two political marriages. He wooed her for almost a year before she agreed to renounce her clan oath and become his wife. It had been a good match and she had proved to be an able partner in the Duke's endeavors; she was, if anything, even more beloved by his people than Mallen himself. She was still beautiful and it was obvious they were still much in love.

Theirs had not quite been a fairy-tale life, unfortunately; when Belessa was six months along in pregnancy with their first and what would prove to be their only child, she was on her way to visit her parents at the Jedeen home holding when unexpected rain had turned to flood and their coach had overturned and been swept into a river. Many Jedeen were removed from other tasks to provide search parties - Q'Jenn had been pulled from his training to become a member of one such group that ended up finding the missing travelers in the cold muddy darkness. He still hated to think of how close they had come to losing both mother and child and what the heroic efforts of the healer who had come with them had cost that healer. In the end they did save the Duchess, but the accident had left Belessa's legs almost useless despite the best efforts of several Jedeen healers who cared for her while nursing her through to the birth of her baby.

The young man who carefully pushed Belessa's wheelchair into the room was clearly her son. Ben K'Ni had his father's compact muscles but on a smaller, well-balanced frame. His hair was a shade redder, his eyes more of his father's grey-blue, but except for a cleft chin his features were almost the male version of the Duchess as she had looked at his age. He carried himself with a quiet alertness as he ensured that his mother was comfortably settled in the open space at the table to the right of the Duke's chair; his attitude was protective but he basked in the warm smile both of his parents bestowed upon him as he went to seat himself on the Duke's left.

Q'Jenn surreptitiously watched the K'Vangil's youngest family member as the Duke gathered some papers. K'Ni had filled out since the last time he had seen him, now more of a man coming to his full growth. He had much of his parents' confident bearing but with an element of aggressive brashness not yet tempered by responsibilities. Q'Jenn ruffled the beard along the edge of his chin as he catalogued his impressions, noting a certain small tension to the set of K'Ni's shoulders, wondering what that denoted. He mentally shrugged and set his thoughts to the business at hand as the Duke stood and began to speak.

"Thank you for coming. The Narelli-Givok trusteeship has long been of major importance to both my family and the people of our world, the beauty of Narelli sustained by the bountiful assets of Givok. Most of you have worked here for many years and I know all of you share in my sense of responsibility for maintaining accountable stewardship of these resources. I am here today to discuss problems of the present and plans for the future. This morning I will go into the issues of both today and tomorrow, then I would like to turn initial planning over to the appropriate people to get started." Mallen took a deep breath as he glanced down at the papers before him.

"Many of you have no doubt heard rumors about my son Tol K’Sov, who was serving as my representative to manage Narelli. It is my unfortunate duty to announce that he is dead, killed by a jealous husband whose wife he had seduced. It is my even more unfortunate duty to tell you that it appears Tol had seriously abused the trust I had placed in him. Initial investigations indicate that not only was he a poor manager overall, he attempted to divert funds from Givok that should have gone to Narelli support as well as money that Narelli itself generates. He was probably getting a kickback from the road construction work and also possibly taking bribes to allow unauthorized use of Narelli assets."

"Serious charges those are, Your Grace," said Y'Dan from his place at the other end of the table. "To resolve these what help do you wish from us?"

"Yes, serious indeed, especially because they involve the trusteeship and not just Tol's personal malfeasance." The Duke sat down, pulled a sheet of ivory paper from the stack on the table. "The World Council has taken formal charge of the investigation. From the financial side, they have moved up the annual trustee audit by two months. Audit teams should be arriving at both Givok and Narelli within the next few days. Senior Manager F'Lor, in addition to maintaining all the normal Narelli operations, we will need all of your usual audit support here and I expect there will be an even more excruciating review of records than usual. Havul Rep will be leading my financial team," he pointed to a short man with a lugubrious face, "so please work with him on his support requirements."

"Aye, Your Grace. Havul and I have been through this many times; he will have whatever is needed."

"Thank you. The audit results will be provided for the criminal investigation, which has a number of things to consider. I understand that there will be one team looking into Tol's death; that should not impact us for the most part. There is another team on its way here headed by an inspector from the world police, Wevn Thol; they will be looking for evidence of illegal activities here in Narelli that Tol might have been involved with. I would ask that Senior Guardian S'Vano serve as their liaison to provide support, records, and any information or speculation that might help."

"I can do that, Your Grace." S'Vano glanced at F'lor, who nodded. "Narelli is a big place, however. We have to keep order and safety for our visitors, patrol the most likely areas for poaching and keep watch for any other suspicious activity, but we can't be everywhere at once. If I have to divert people to assist the investigation, especially for searches, I may need augmentation."

"The police team will include a few unattached Guardians, but the people that Tol was dealing with are not going to be happy about having their protected access to Narelli cut off. I wouldn't be surprised if the risk of violence is going to increase for a while." The Duke looked at Y'Dan and M'Indu. "Do you have any additional people who could help?"

M'Indu and Y'Dan looked at each other, then briefly conferred. M'Indu said, "They are not warranted, but we have foresters and others with security training who have served at Narelli and are familiar with at least some portions of the area. We can have at least a dozen good people here within a week and will request permission for Guardians from our reserve pool to be reassigned as well."

Q'Jenn had listened closely to this last exchange, although his face showed no indication of his interest. Perhaps this was why he was here, to be in on these discussions while waiting for orders to join the police team? For the moment, however, it seemed his curiosity would have to be put on hold as the meeting moved on to a new topic.

"That will be excellent and very much appreciated," replied the Duke. "Those are the two most immediate and pressing issues. While I am here, however, I would also like to mention some future plans that I would like to discuss in more detail over the next few weeks." He turned to F'Lor. "I have actually read your annual reports, even if it sometimes seems little action come from them. Dok was always grateful for all the work you put into those, and we had been starting to look very seriously at several of your recommendations before he died. Unfortunately, Tol did not share his zeal; I suspect your last report is still languishing in a desk drawer as I have no record of having received it. I would like to set up a time to review the most recent recommendations and discuss them with your senior staff. I'm particularly interested in updates for the lodge and outstations, visitor activities and transportation."

F'Lor's eyes lit up as he smiled. "I will be very happy indeed to coordinate a time for that meeting. Truthfully I was beginning to wonder about the lack of response and I think you'll find a lot of enthusiasm from my staff about our suggestions."

"Good, I look forward to that discussion." The Duke paused as if gathering his thoughts. "I don't know how closely each of you follows news about events outside Narelli, but there are many things happening in our world that will impact us here. For many years we have been in an age of increasing change and innovation in which faster and faster improvements in transportation and communication have been driving transformations in areas such as commerce, political interaction and use of resources." He leaned back in his chair and looked slowly around the table. "Those changes and transformations will continue whether we wish it or not, so I believe the best course of action is to embrace and understand what is happening, learn to use the new world to our advantage while keeping the best of the old world."

Q'Jenn had been watching Ben and caught the straightening of his shoulders and uplifted head, the slight smile that broke through what had been a carefully neutral expression. Ah, he thought, this must be where we get to what interests him.

"Two of the biggest advances are in transportation and communications," the Duke continued. "The steam engine has given us greatly improved speed and transport capability on our waterways and between continents; the World Council wants to extend that capability to the land as well as continuing to explore other types of engines and transports. Geba Placon," the Duke pointed to a pale woman with black hair and intense black eyes, who nodded, "has been leading a joint engineering team in Givok, a team my son Ben has been working with. The Council is considering implementation of one of their recommendations, a world land transport network of both roads and the new metal rails to interface with the ports; this new network would be supported by global taxes and administered by a department reporting to the Council."

"We have heard of this proposal and the Jedeen have supported it in Council as long as it is implemented *responsibly*," said M'Indu. "The maps we were shown indicated one of the major hubs would be at Doranto, which is only twenty miles south of the Narelli border. Is it your intention to extend your new roads to this proposed hub?"

Mallen smiled and nodded. "You have anticipated my desire, Counselor M'Indu. I am not unmindful of the concerns about how the roads here in Narelli are being built, however; Senior Manager F'Lor's concerns were very well laid out in his private letter to me, and I would have wanted an investigation even without Tol's death. The first part of the effort here will therefore be for a joint review of the current road project to understand what has been happening, find out how to do it better and gather lessons learned for the follow-on effort to begin initial planning for additions and extensions."

There was a general round of approving smiles, although Q'Jenn noticed that the Jedeen engineers were noticeably more enthusiastic.

"We have already seen significant benefits in many places, including Givok, from the ability to carry more goods and people faster. I believe that the eventual global impact for us will be greater numbers of people with both the time and increased income to visit our world's treasures, such as Narelli, and I want to start planning for changes which will enable us to improve our capabilities to provide a safe and enjoyable experience to more visitors. Some of F'Lor's recommendations will dovetail nicely with that goal, especially enhancements to the lodge and the outstations. We will also need to start planning for new or converted structures to house and maintain vehicles."

Q'Jenn gave a tiny sigh; clearly the Duke meant for more of those infernal machines to be bustling about in the forest. He hoped the Duke was also as serious about the 'responsible development' part of his plan.

"You mentioned communications?" asked Y'Dan.

"Yes. While the engineers tinker with new types of equipment, we need to take full advantage of the wiretalking systems that are already available. I want to run redundant systems to all of the outstations and possibly to some new security stations so we have a full network, not just the stations here and at the two biggest outstations. The latest word I have is that it may be possible to add voice as well as code within a few years, so I want to have some people thinking about what it will take for us to be ready for that."

"Locations do you have in mind for all of these wires?" Y'Dan waved a hand vaguely.

"Hmmm, that's an excellent point." The Duke frowned. "We don't want wires running haphazardly every which way. We may want to place them next to roads, or perhaps even underground in some places. I'd like to have the team that is going to review the road project and planning include that in their task."

There were general nods of agreement.

"Those were the main topics I wanted to cover this morning. There will be a lot of work for a while to sort out current problems and start planning future improvements, so I don't want to spend time on details this morning. What I would like is for the appropriate people on each side to get together and have some initial meetings to identify what we need to do to get started, then report back to me."

"One very important question you have not addressed," said Y'Dan quietly. "Your personal interest in Narelli is clear and much appreciated, but a new K'Vangil manager for Narelli have you identified?"

There was silence as Mallen stared at the table. Finally he sighed and looked up. "You are quite correct, Counselor Y'Dan. That is a very important question, and yes, I have given the matter serious thought." He leaned back, steepled his fingers, glanced at Belessa and Ben before continuing. "I have to admit that when my son Dok died, it was at a difficult time. I did have a few misgivings about Tol, but he seemed capable enough and I had little time to spare from other matters that seemed more pressing. Looking back now, however, I can see that I did not provide enough training, guidance and oversight for a position of such importance. That failure was mine and I take full responsibility for the problems that resulted."

The room was silent and still, all eyes focused on the Duke.

"I have capable managers at my other holdings and my oldest son Randel is representing me at the World Council sessions. Val K'Van has things well under control at Givok, my other major trustee duty. Therefore, the Duchess and I will be staying here at Narelli for the next few months, working together to manage things until the situation is relatively normal again. Longer term… well, my first hope is that Senior Manager F'Lor will be staying on in his current role as contract manager for at least the next year or two. I have great confidence in his abilities and he will provide stability."

"It is an honor to serve, Your Grace," said F'Lor. "I will do my best to justify your faith."

"The Jedeen Clan concurs," added M'Indu. "We will honor your request.”

"Thank you. For K'Vangil, I will be looking to my son Ben K'Ni as the potential future manager. It is a large responsibility and one we had not planned on having to thrust upon him at such a young age, but I believe you will find him to be honest and capable. He will be assisting the Duchess and me these next few months so he can get experience and training; I don't want to repeat the mistakes I made with Tol K’Sov." Mallen leaned forward, hands on the table before him. "While we work out the details of the short and long-term transitions what I need from all of you is your support to get things moving on the most immediate problems. Identify responsibilities and actions for the audit, the criminal investigation, the road construction review and at least an initial team for future planning – I want briefings tomorrow afternoon on where we stand."

Various voices chimed in with affirmations.

"Very well, I thank all of you for your efforts and I'll let you get to work. I would like to see the Jedeen Counselors, Senior Manager F'Lor, Senior Guardian S'Vano, Senior Guardian Q'Jenn and Lang Gac for a few minutes, please."

The scraping of chairs and low buzz of voices filled the air as most people departed. The Duke waved the remaining members to sit at the table closer to him, so Q'Jenn moved up to sit next to S'Vano. S'Vano exchanged a quiet greeting with Gac, head of the K'Vangil security detail.

Mallen glanced over to ensure the door was closed before speaking. He put one elbow on an arm of his chair, rubbing his right temple with two fingertips. "I have asked you to stay because there are some things we need to discuss that I did not wish to bring up in front of a wider audience. There are some potentially serious security and risk threats that all of you need to know about. Before we left home, the Duchess, Lang and I were able to have a long talk with Inspector Thol; his concerns are in a couple of areas." The Duke dropped his hand. "As our world has gotten richer, that wealth has bred new criminals, better organized, more ruthless, expanding into new areas. Wevn Thol's previous investigations were already leading him in the direction of Tol and Narelli, among other places. Narelli has valuable resources, whether it be rare animals and plants prized for their trophy or medicinal value or minerals which we have chosen not to exploit. The inspector has evidence that Tol was working with at least two different groups, helping them with information such as where and when security patrols would be running, maps to certain areas and perhaps even with supplies and transport."

"Tol had actually suggested on several occasions that we change our patrol routes," said S'Vano. "When he couldn't give a good reason we refused, but he definitely took a great deal of interest in what my people were doing. And we've come across signs of unauthorized visitors more often."

Q'Jenn stirred. "Several months ago I had a tasking from Inspector Thol's group to run a search in a specific area of the forest. I informed F'lor and S'Vano of my orders but they were not allowed to tell anyone else. I caught three trophy animal poachers and brought them in; Tol came down to the security office where I was holding them while we waited for a transport and was quite angry."

"I remember that." S'Vano's expression was thoughtful. "He yelled at you for a half hour about lack of coordination and some other unprintable things about high-handed Jedeen Guardians before he stormed off." He grinned. "I thought it was just because he didn't like you, but now it appears he had quite a different motive. I suspect he got quite an earful from his new 'friends' about what you did."

"Probably so," shrugged Q'Jenn. He was still wondering exactly what his part was supposed to be in all this but had resigned himself to waiting for new orders.

"We can certainly look at running more patrols and staggering the patrol areas, but we need to be mindful of the potential for increased risk to our visitors and our own people," said the Duke. "I would hate for people to get injured on what should be peaceful fishing or hiking trips just by being in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"S'Vano and I will work with Wevn, see what additional information and help he can provide," Lang Gac replied. "As S'Vano mentioned earlier, though, the Narelli is a huge place and there are still many parts of it that are not well-mapped. Even with the extra people to be provided by the Jedeen we could be stretched thin."

"Let's see how things go initially and what we run into, then we'll adjust what we can," suggested the Duke.

"Aye, Your Grace," said S'Vano as both he and Gac nodded.

"Inspector Thol had another concern," continued Mallen. "That is the increasing lethality of the weaponry criminals are starting to use. Since most military forces were disbanded after the final peace treaties there has been little change in traditional weapons. Thol showed us some new mechanical crossbows, however, that give even a novice almost as much range and accuracy as a trained bowman and the metal bolts appear quite lethal. Of even more concern, though, are reports of new types of explosives and chemical-driven projectile weapons."

"We are aware of these developments, and have even been doing some research of our own," said M'Indu, "in conjunction with the police, of course. Indications are the potential lethality may be quite high. Our Guardians have already encountered various crossbows in the field so we do need to be concerned about those. There are still significant issues with accuracy and reliability with other types of projectile weapons, though, so I suspect it will be a while before that sort of thing is commonly available."

"Progress is certainly a two-edged sword," mused the Duke. He paused and looked directly at the Jedeen Counselors. "Speaking of swords, I have seen some remarkable feats by Guardians, but I was wondering if they can defend against these new crossbows also?"

"With the right skills and proper training, it is possible, Your Grace," said M'Indu carefully.

"Possible?" It was the first word Ben K'ni had uttered. The tone was civil but tinged with skepticism.

"With the gift of the Spirit and a lot of hard work, yes," Q'Jenn said firmly. "I have done it." He had been watching K'ni, who had been politely attentive throughout the meeting; the young man seemed unconvinced but didn't say anything further.

"Increased the difficulty and intensity of our training we have." Y'Dan looked at Mallen rather than Ben. "Much confidence we have in the candidates presented for the Guardian warrant, but true it is that without the blessing of the Spirit few there are who can master the level of needed skill."

The Duke seemed to be digesting this information; he glanced at Belessa, who had a half-smile on her face, and nodded. "Thank you for that information." He carefully gathered together the small stack of papers on the table. "Well, awareness of potential increased danger was primarily what I wanted to discuss; we can continue this topic after Inspector Thol gets here. There is one last thing." He turned his head toward the Duchess and raised an eyebrow. "Did you wish to address this request?"

"You're doing quite well, dear. Why don't you go ahead and wrap things up?" Belessa smiled graciously.

"Alright. I mentioned earlier that the Duchess and I will be managing the leadership transition here and Ben will be, so to speak, our understudy. Certainly there are some of our activities we will be including him in, and he has been an active player in many of the engineering efforts at Givok so he will be assisting with review and planning efforts. There is a great deal to learn about Narelli, however, about the forest and the impact of its vastness and variety, the rhythm of life in the forest, all of the things that the Jedeen do for K'Vangli under the existing contract, understanding our Jedeen allies, what it means to be a trustee, how to deal with our visitors… and, quite frankly, I also have some concern for his safety while out in Narelli. I may be over-reacting to the mistakes I made with Tol and feeling over-protective, but there is so much Ben will need to know that the Duchess and I will not have enough time to teach. I need a full-time person who knows and understands Narelli, its life and its processes, a person who will work directly with Ben to augment his training in conjunction with the Duchess and me. I have submitted a request for Senior Guardian Q'Jenn to fill this vital role."

"Q'Jenn? Well, I hope he does a better job than he did with X'Tos," came an angry mutter from Ben K'ni. The rest of his mumbled comment was almost inaudible except for something that sounded suspiciously like 'damned Jedeen babysitter'.

The room was suddenly quiet.

"I will answer that," said Belessa, a touch of anger in her own voice. "First, there is no Jedeen named X'Tos. There is an unfortunate young man named Xantos Krion whose parents could not deal with his Spirit gift. They requested that he be taken in by the Jedeen and raised as one of their own. That young man took the Jedeen clan oath and later broke it for the sake of wealth and glory. Xantos Krion is a wanted criminal. Second, Krion is a distant cousin of Tol K’Sov on his mother's side, and it was Tol who filled your head with all that nonsense about 'poor Xantos'. We've now ample evidence of what kind of person Tol was, and I should think that tells us a great deal about his credibility." She pulled back from the table, wheeled around to Ben's side. "None of this will be easy for any of us, Ben, but we have our duty. We want you to have tools to enable you to do well," she placed a hand on his arm, "and call it a mother's anxiety if you wish."

Ben put his head down, red lighting his cheeks. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be a problem when you have so much else to worry about." He rested a hand over Belessa's, looked at her and managed a smile. "I'll work hard to support you."

"And the Duke and I will support you, my son." Belessa smiled as Mallen nodded.

Q'Jenn had been considering the Duke's request during the byplay, but he also wondered what had triggered K'Ni's apparent issue with Jedeen. He had indeed been the Jedeen who'd had the training of Krion after he took his oath at eighteen and requested to become a Guardian; if Ben K'Ni had a distorted view of what had happened that could make things awkward if he was actually going to be required to spend a lot of time trying to teach the young engineer. That was a prospect he wasn't sure he found particularly inviting. There was a more important issue he had to raise first, though, which might forestall the Duke's desire and let him get back to his other work. He waited until the tension in the room dissipated before speaking carefully chosen words, mindful that there were two Jedeen Counselors at the table, at least one of whom he suspected would probably tell him to stuff his personal feelings and just get on with making the Duke happy.

"Your Grace, I am, of course, willing to serve as needs dictate. However, I must remind you that I am an unattached Senior Guardian and the World Council has first call on my services if they should determine that I am needed elsewhere. I suggest that we might wish to be wary of starting a task here that I may not be able to finish."

"That is not a problem," said Mallen. "They fully appreciate the seriousness of our situation and I was assured before I left that they fast-tracked the approval of my request for your dedicated services until such time as the Narelli investigation is over and a successful transition to a new K'Vangil manager is completed. You should be receiving your new orders any time now." The Duke smiled, cocked an eyebrow. "In effect, you will be working for me until I say we're finished."

"Within the terms and limits of my warrant, of course," Q'Jenn replied with a nod, keeping his countenance determinedly neutral.

"Of course." Mallen's tone was bland, almost bored, but there was a hint of a gleam in his eyes. "I am certain that your knowledge of Narelli and your experience and independent judgment as a trusted observer and mediator will be of great value to our efforts."

"Not to mention the importance of your wickedly swift sword and law enforcement powers," Belessa added dryly. Her expression clearly said she was aware that neither Q'Jenn nor Ben seemed to be terribly enthusiastic about their proposed relationship of teacher and student.

Q'Jenn avoided looking at Ben as he stood and bowed. "I look forward to gaining a better understanding of how I may support you, Your Grace. May I assume we shall meet at your earliest convenience to discuss your requirements?"

"Fifteenth hour today would be excellent if you are available, Senior Guardian Q'Jenn."

"That will be quite satisfactory, Your Grace." Q'Jenn didn't add that he would be making a point of stopping by the communications office first to see if his new orders had arrived and what exactly those orders actually said.

"That is all for this morning, gentleman. Thank you for your support," said the Duke as he rose. "Let's go to lunch."

The others stood and bowed. Ben immediately went to his place at the back of the Duchess's wheelchair, but she raised a hand. "Q'Jenn, would you walk with me, please?"

"Of course, Your Grace." He ignored the resentful glance Ben threw his way, waiting until everyone else had left before moving over to the Duchess. "Where would you like to go, Your Grace?"

"Outdoors would be wonderful. There are things we need to discuss."

"As you wish, Your Grace."

*** ***

Belessa motioned to Q'Jenn to open the door and then wheeled herself the rest of the way. The conference room was on the first floor, as were the ducal quarters and many of the other primary facilities, and ramps had long ago been installed on outer doors. Shortly they found themselves wandering side by side along well-groomed paths among the trees.

For twenty minutes they walked in silence, Q'Jenn waiting for the Duchess to open the conversation. They ended up on a bluff overlooking the lake and miles of green forest. There were four tables with benches so Q'Jenn sat down, his back leaning against the table, while the Duchess was at the end. They quietly gazed at the panorama of sunlit blues and greens.

"It's beautiful and looks so peaceful, almost like home," said the Duchess wistfully. "But there is so much life out there if people would only stop and look and listen instead of being in a hurry to be somewhere or do something."

"Aye, Your Grace."

"Belessa, please, it's just the two of us, and sometimes I feel like I've been 'Your Graced' half to death. I'm still Jedeen under all the fancy clothes and titles."

"As you wish. The gift of the Spirit does not change just because a clan oath is taken or not taken, and I still feel its presence when I am with you."

"Fortunately for me, the Spirit does seem decidedly indifferent to such mundane things of mankind as oaths and politics. It has been a blessing to have that gift." Belessa smiled, but her expression darkened as she turned her head to look at Q'Jenn. "The gift does sometimes diminish, however. I was very sad to hear of M'Lora's recent passing at such a young age; I know how much she meant to you. I tried to visit her whenever I went home to the clan holding, but she had withdrawn from the world except for nursing the most grievously ill." She reached out to touch Q'Jenn's arm. "I am forever grateful to her for what she did for me and my son."

"She was a healer and it was what the Spirit called to her to do." Q'Jenn stared straight ahead, fighting back the sudden surge of memories of that black night, fighting through wailing wind and sucking mud to pull the young Duchess from the smashed carriage, whose prayers to the Spirit were only for the child within her belly, not for herself. The young woman's body had been too broken to move safely without help so M'Lora had summoned all of her power to hold the demon of death at bay. For two days she had been in a deep trance with Belessa and the unborn child until a rescue party with wagons and more healers had reached them. Q'Jenn and his small team had kept them warm, dry and safe from predators, but there was little else they could do and Q'Jenn felt the pain of helplessness as he watched his betrothed. The image of M'Lora's dark eyes when she finally awakened and realized that her gift was gone, burned out in the struggle, was seared into Q'Jenn's memory. She never fully recovered but instead had released Q'Jenn from his offer of marriage and withdrawn into a life of secluded service, nursing the dying and those with the most infectious of diseases. The Duchess of K'Vangil lived and bore a healthy son, though she never walked again.

Q'Jenn drew a deep breath and shook off the awakened images. He put a hand over Belessa's. "M'Lora would not have wanted you to mourn her, but rather to rejoice in a life well led. You have done much good with the years that she gave you."

"I have tried to honor her and our teachings. The memories from that time will not let me do aught else, although there is nobody else but you that I have ever been able to talk to about it. Not even Mallen, much as I love him." Belessa sighed. "Perhaps there is at least one person I should have had that discussion with. I apologize for Ben's disrespect at the meeting. He is a good son and a good man, but life has not been easy for him and he seems to have developed mixed feelings about the Jedeen the last few years."

"He clearly cares for you a great deal."

"Ben has always been very protective of me. As a child he used to make models of leg braces that he thought would help me walk; these days he tries to make vehicles that I can pilot about myself." Belessa shook her head with a half smile. "When he was little he hated it when I had to be away working. He was so much younger than Mallen's children that sometimes it seemed like he was an only child, trying to grow up faster to be their equals." She frowned. "That was how Tol got to him. When Ben was a teenager, Tol used to cultivate him when he was home from school, playing up to him and his obsession with machines, filling his head with stories, including stories about his charming cousin Xantos and how the Jedeen treated him so badly. I should have seen it much sooner and put a stop to it, perhaps even sent Ben to live with my parents for a while, but Mallen sent Tol to Givok right after Val took over from Randel. Ben immersed himself in his courses and his machines, and after he graduated he went to Givok. Tol was off doing other things by then."

Q'Jenn swung around to face Belessa. "Your son has a gift from the Spirit." His raised eyebrow asked the unspoken question about the nature of that gift.

"Yes." Belessa stared out across the lake for a moment before glancing at Q'Jenn. "We weren't sure at first… Ben was late in showing signs. It started with dreams and I think it frightened him because he couldn't understand what was happening. I was able to work with him, to explain about the Spirit and what it means to have a gift. He was a quick learner but there was only so much I could teach him; his gift was developing very differently from mine. Mallen and I talked about sending him to the clan to foster for a while. When we brought it up with Ben, he was adamant that he did not want to leave me and, to be honest, I was selfish enough to want him at home. I contacted the Jedeen Council and they loaned us a married couple for a few years. Did you know C'Nal and W'Luva?"

"It's been a long time, but I remember them. Good people." Q'Jenn gave a small snort. "Everybody always thought it was an odd marriage. C'Nal was quiet, tall and so thin the joke was the sun couldn't find him to cast a shadow. W'Luva always had something to say, loved a good joke and was so short she barely came up to C'Nal's elbow."

Belessa laughed. "That was them. It worked out well. They taught Ben meditation, katas, self-defense." Her eyes shone fondly. "Ben loved the sword fighting, not so much the bow. He was very good with both, though, and he still practices sometimes with the sword. It was W'Luva who taught Ben how to explore his gift to see where it lay; he loved taking things apart and making them work better, envisioning a function and making a machine to do that… definitely an engineer. I'm afraid he didn't relate so well to the living side of our world, although he tried hard for my sake."

"I thought C'Nal became ill several years ago?"

"Yes, cancer of the stomach. He and W'Luva went back home… Ben was almost thirteen when they left. After that Ben and I did meditations together, I would watch his katas when I could, he found other partners to work with him on his sword skills, but he preferred to spend most of his time with his machines. He has become a remarkable engineer. Val raves about his work and was very disappointed when he found out we were bringing Ben to Narelli."

Q'Jenn nodded, turned back to face out toward the lake again. There was a soft stillness as they both contemplated the view for several minutes.

"Belessa, I appreciate the information you've provided, and I appreciate the importance of Narelli to K'Vangil and the world," ventured Q'Jenn. He swung a leg over the bench so he could sit facing the Duchess, resting his elbow on the table. "But I will freely admit that I don't understand just what it is that you want me to do during this transition of leadership."

"We'll speak more this afternoon with Mallen and Ben, but as for my part…" Belessa tilted her head, half-closed her eyes and seemed to be considering her words for a long moment. Her head came back up and she partially turned her wheelchair toward Q'Jenn. "I both want and need for Ben to be successful with Narelli. He is intelligent, not afraid to make decisions and work hard, can be very charming and he certainly understands the new technologies. What he lacks is experience in several areas: the mundane side of managing, dealing with leading a disparate group of non-engineers, understanding the support contract and the Jedeen ways and the very nature of Narelli itself. He has much to learn and only a few months to absorb new knowledge and skills that he will need to apply after Mallen and I return home."

"You want a teacher, not a babysitter?" Q'Jenn smiled wryly.

"You heard that – I'm sorry." Belessa shook her head ruefully. "Ben has always been sensitive about his independence, so it may sometimes be a fine line between tactful teaching and needing to make a point. Ben can be stubborn at times and is not happy about being here at Narelli, but he also understands the importance of the task he is going to undertake." She hesitated before continuing. "I expect that you will need to take him out into several parts of Narelli in order to gain an appreciation of its vastness and variety as well as the nature of the work that goes on to maintain it for our current visitors and future generations. The increased risks are very real; I asked Mallen to request you by name because I felt you had the best mix of experience and skill to not just teach my son but also keep him safe."

"I am honored by your trust," Q'Jenn inclined his head, "and will do my best to justify it."

"I don't doubt it," said Belessa. "I'm sure you still have many questions and I know Ben will definitely have questions as well. Mallen and I will try to help both of you sort things out this afternoon. In the meantime, all this fresh air has given me an appetite, lunch is waiting for us and it will be a pleasant journey to the lodge."

"As you wish, Your Grace." Q'Jenn grinned at the Duchess's grimace as he stood, allowing her playful swat to his arm as they both turned to go.

*** ***

Counselor M'Indu was in the hallway as Q'Jenn came out of the communications office.

"Service, sir," said Q'Jenn, inclining his head. "What can I do for you?"

"Service," M'Indu replied. "Do you have confirmation of your new assignment?"

"Aye, sir." Q'Jenn glanced down at the sheet of paper he had just received from the wire clerk. "My last tasking is cancelled and I am now assigned to support Duke K'Vangil 'in whatever capacity the Duke requires during the transition of the Narelli trustee'. It is just as open-ended as the Duke indicated this morning."

"Indeed. A highly unusual situation." M'Indu's eyebrows went up and down as he mulled the words for a moment. "After you meet with the Duke to determine your responsibilities, I would appreciate it if you find some time to speak with F'Lor and explain to him what your role will be and your analysis of the intended relationship with young K'ni."

"Of course, sir. I will do everything I can to ensure that the transition is successful for all parties on both the K'Vangil and Jedeen sides."

"Thank you." M'Indu nodded and passed Q'Jenn to go into the communications office.

A few minutes later Q'Jenn entered a small informal conference room where Mallen, Belessa and Ben were waiting.

"Punctual as usual, I see," said the Duke. "Please, have a seat. There is coffee, tea and water on the sideboard if you wish."

"I try to be, Your Grace." Q'Jenn helped himself to a cup of tea before settling himself at the table across from Belessa and Ben.

"I'd prefer to keep this meeting informal, so please ignore the formal honorifics in here," said Mallen. "You have received your official orders, I take it?"

"Yes, I did." Q'Jenn passed the paper over. "For all practical purposes, I am now attached to your service until the transition here is resolved."

The sheet went from Mallen to Belessa to Ben, each of whom read it over.

"The Council was very generous with this gift," said Mallen. "I must remember to thank them."

"And quite vague in describing the tasking," replied Q'Jenn, adding dryly, "as they too often tend to be."

"Well, yes, I imagine they have bureaucrats who specialize in that sort of thing." Mallen smiled. "But I would think you'd be used to that by now."

"True, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Most Guardians prefer to get something quite a bit more specific and detailed before sticking our nose and other body parts into what might be harm's way."

"Let's see if we can provide some enlightenment, then, shall we?"

Ben spoke up, holding the paper. "This thing means that Senior Guardian Q'Jenn works for you, Father?"

"Basically, yes, as long as I don't try to order him to do anything illegal." Mallen pointed to Q'Jenn. "He works for me." He pointed at Ben. "You work for me." He swung around to point at Belessa, who raised a warning eyebrow. "And… I think we won't go there." Everybody except Ben smiled.

"Doesn't he also work for the Jedeen?" Ben scowled. "I saw him talking to Counselor M'Indu outside the communications office. How impartial does that make him?"

Mallen frowned and started to speak, but Belessa put a hand on his arm with a small shake of her head.

"I realize that it might seem reasonable to many to assume that clan ties supersede all others, but clan ties are only one part of a person's duties and obligations in life. Acknowledging that fact is what enabled our various peoples to form a world government and end the wars that had been going on for so long," said Q'Jenn. "Do you understand what a Guardian is and why the World Council employs them as trusted agents?"

"They are Jedeen who have been issued a warrant by the government," said Ben, "and the government pays the Jedeen for their services. Sort of like a hired security force."

"There is quite a bit more to it than that." Q'Jenn leaned forward, elbows on the table, fingers steepled. "Guardians are usually Jedeen, although there have been exceptions, because typically only Spirit-blessed Jedeen are able to successfully complete the long and rigorous training required. We study not only physical skills such as self-defense, but also topics such as law, negotiation, history and ethics. Depending on the nature of one's Spirit gift, a person might also study mathematics and physical sciences.

Only when the Jedeen Council is satisfied that a person is ready and has the highest moral and ethical standards in addition to physical, mental and emotional skills and knowledge will that person be presented to the World Council police board as a candidate. The board conducts their own testing; if you pass, you are accepted in a probationary status for one year. If you do well on your assignments you will be tested again at the end of the year and if the police board approves, you take the oath of service to the World Council, receive your warrant granting you law enforcement powers and become a Junior Guardian. If you do well enough over many assignments and many years, you might eventually become a Senior Guardian, but that is not guaranteed."

"How long did it take you to become a Senior Guardian?" asked Ben.

"I knew very early that I wanted to be a Guardian, so I started training when I was eleven. I passed my probationary year and received my warrant at twenty-three, which is considered exceptionally early. It took another ten years before I became a Senior Guardian."

"But you took the Jedeen clan oath before you took the Guardian's oath and never renounced it. Isn't that a conflict?"

"The Jedeen clan oath means that I am a member of the clan, that I believe in the Jedeen principles, renounce the pursuit of worldly goods and accept the support of the clan in return for serving them. I work as a Guardian and the government pays the clan for that. My oath to the government is a higher obligation – I am morally bound to serve the world's best interests, to enforce the laws of the land, to ensure that all parties to mediations I conduct are treated fairly and, in general, try to make the world a better place."

Ben looked skeptical. "And who decides what makes the world a better place?"

"I follow the will of the Spirit in that regard. It is from the Spirit that I draw my power and the Spirit guides me in performing my duties. It is one of the greatest strengths of the Jedeen and why those who truly believe are trusted by the government; it is very difficult indeed to corrupt a Guardian." Q'Jenn sat back in his chair. "I know you are Spirit-blessed because I can feel it, but do you truly believe in the Spirit, Ben K'Ni?"

Ben seemed caught off guard by the unexpected question. He sat back in his chair, blinked a few times, his mouth a thin line. "Well…" Ben glanced almost apologetically at Belessa. "I'm not sure, at least not the way I think you mean it." He looked back at Q'Jenn. "I have these things I can do… and feel… that are supposed to be gifts from the Spirit. I appreciate some of those things, but I'm not sure I always understand them." Ben shrugged. "Perhaps I would feel differently if I had been raised as a Jedeen, but I am happy with the family and upbringing I have. Maybe it's called something else, but I am quite certain that I have just as strong a grasp of my moral and ethical duties and responsibilities." He straightened his shoulders and raised his head. "To be a K'Vangil is to have obligations commensurate with that privilege. Our honor has been stained by Tol K’Sov's disregard of those obligations, and I will work very hard as trustee of Narelli to erase that stain."

"Fair enough." Q'Jenn nodded slightly. "I'm quite willing to accept your good intentions about doing the right thing if you're satisfied that I am doing the same thing. Truce?" He raised one eyebrow. "After all, we will be working together very closely and it would be much easier for everyone if we all trust one another."

"Oh. I didn't…." Ben cleared his throat as he noticed the half smiles on his parents' faces. He had the grace to blush a little as he realized how his questions must have been perceived and how neatly Q'Jenn had led the conversation to this conclusion. "Sorry, clearly I didn't understand what a Guardian really is. You're right, of course. We all have the same goal to ensure the preservation and best use of Narelli for our world – I'll remember that in the future."

"Well, now that that's out of the way, we can get back to business," said Mallen briskly. "While we were in Givok, Ben and I had an extensive discussion of the requirements of the trusteeship and I've provided him a copy of the legal documents. We also spent several hours talking to Val since he and Ben will need to coordinate closely on a number of issues for Givok-Narelli. That is an area I will personally continue to work with Ben on to ensure he understands what needs to be done and, in particular, my expectations for *how* I want things to be done. There are many other areas, though, where I am going to be looking to you," Mallen pointed at Q'Jenn, "to help me educate our future trustee."

Q'Jenn nodded, took a sip of tea as he listened.

"Ben, one of the critical factors here is gaining an understanding of the Jedeen support contract. The K'Vangil staff at Narelli is usually pretty small since our responsibilities are primarily for oversight and management of the overall effort; that means most of the actual work is done through the support contract. It can sometimes be a fine line between managing and setting policy and interfering with day-to-day work, which is a dance you will need to learn well to be successful." Mallen tapped on a three-inch document bound in a green hard cover, then pushed it to Ben. "This is the current contract which I retrieved from Tol's office. There are three more official copies of the current contract in the office as well as previous versions going back several years. F'Lor has his own sets and both I and the Jedeen Council maintain copies. You will need to become very familiar with everything that is in there, if not verbatim then at least knowing the primary concepts and being able to find the details. I want you to do an initial reading and be prepared for an introductory meeting with F'Lor to discuss the major topics in three days. That will be in addition to sitting in on some of the status and planning meetings coming up, of course.""

Ben swallowed as he hefted the document and took a quick riffle through its pages. "Yes, sir," he replied very quietly.

"Q'Jenn, in regard to this task, you are, in effect, Ben's mediator and mentor. I'm assuming that you already know this contract?"

"Aye, since Narelli is a special interest of mine and I've had repeated missions here, I routinely memorize pertinent documents, including the contract."

"May I ask how you managed to memorize this whole thing?" Ben's tone was deferential, clearly mindful of their recent words.

"Total recall is one of the skills that my Jedeen training required. I'd be happy to teach you how if you like."

"I think that would be good to include on our agenda," replied Ben with another glance at the hefty document.

"I agree, we can add that," said Mallen. "Q'Jenn, I'd like you to establish a master schedule for Ben and attend meetings with him so you're aware of what's being discussed. As my first priority, please set up a conference for Ben, F'Lor, the Duchess and myself in three days to review the primary articles of the contract and F'Lor's organization. Then I want a series of get-togethers for Ben and each of F'Lor's department managers to start digging down into the details of what goes on here – I think you will probably need to talk to most of them multiple times given the scope of their responsibilities. I will leave it to you and F'Lor to sort out the details."

"I'll start working on a draft immediately. F'Lor will need to know what my role is anyway, since this is a unique situation, and I believe he will be willing to give me carte blanche in dealing with his staff to set up meetings as needed. I will, of course, keep him informed of the schedule and any taskings, questions or issues that arise."

"Absolutely." Mallen looked at Ben. "That was a teaching point, son. Good communication with your contract manager is a must. This is going to be a lot different from your experiences being a team member on a project or even a team leader. As *the* K'Vangil manager, you will have the right to direct things and to talk to anyone on F'Lor's staff, but if you overdo it and keep sticking your nose into things, especially without telling F'Lor, you will quickly find that your relationships with both F'Lor and his people will deteriorate into mistrust and lack of respect up and down the entire chain. In fact, I would suggest that you ask F'Lor to explain what he sees as your role, what he expects from you and what he expects to provide to you. In particular, make sure you also discuss how to deal with guests that come to you for special favors so you don't get yourself in trouble."

"Yes, sir, I'll do that. Thank you," replied Ben.

"It appears that the schedule will be quite full for at least the next several days," said Q'Jenn. "I'm assuming you will want us at the audit team meeting with Havul Rep; we should stay in close touch with the audit process and results since that will be an annual event and finances are a large part of the K'Vangil responsibilities. There is the meeting with Inspector Thol about the criminal investigation into Tol's activities but I'd recommend that Ben and I not be involved with Thol's actual investigation unless specifically requested. Any information about risk sources will be useful, but I can ask Thol and S'Vano to keep us apprised of those. There are planning and technology meetings and the road contract review as well – how much involvement do you want Ben to have in those?"

"I definitely should be part of those activities," Ben interjected. "I have current knowledge to contribute about technology efforts and I need to know where we want to go for future development for Narelli. And the road contract issues certainly look like something I'll have to understand from financial, contractual and future planning views."

"Good points," replied Mallen. He and Belessa shared a glance and smile. "Of course, I don't suppose it hurts that technology is the subject you enjoy most."

"They are the areas where I can be of most immediate value while I study how you and Mother manage the overall efforts," said Ben smoothly.

"Sounds like you're already learning," Belessa murmured, her smile widening. "There are longer range and broader scope efforts we need to include these next few months while Mallen and I will be here to deal with transition issues."

"Indeed." Mallen nodded. "Narelli is a vast expanse and it is difficult to truly appreciate its size and resources without actually going out into the forest in person." He shook his head and snorted. "It certainly took me a while to figure it out when I started here. My father finally took me out and left me in the middle of nowhere and made me find my own way back. It wasn't until I eventually stumbled back to the lodge six days later that he told me he had had one of the Guardians watching me the whole time."

"I don't think we'll need to resort to such drastic actions, dear." Belessa grinned wickedly as if invoking an old inside joke. "After all, his stubbornness may come from you but his intelligence is clearly from my side of the family."

Q'Jenn was watching all three of the K'Vangils as Mallen reached over with a grin of his own to squeeze Belessa's hand, teasing that he had at least been smart enough to convince her to marry him. Ben was focused on Belessa and his expression had softened to fond indulgence and devotion; Q'Jenn thought he would hate to be the person who even thought about ever harming the beautiful Jedeen turned noblewoman. He stirred and spoke, "I take it you want Ben to see the forest?"

"Yes, indeed, but not just to visit," Mallen replied, serious again. "Put together some trips for specific purposes. Talk to F'Lor and find out what he suggests Ben see and understand. Go out for a complete circuit on the lake to understand just how big it is and how long it takes to travel on the water and where the main rivers come in. Pick at least one of the highest peaks; ride part of the way up and hike to the top so he can see for himself how far the forest extends as well as how long travel on foot or horseback takes in that kind of country. Show him some of the best hunting and fishing areas, some of the rare species we protect, and the mineral resources in the Narelli we've deliberately chosen not to exploit and discuss the threats to those that we have to fend off. Have him talk to guests about why they come to Narelli, go out on a few guest 'adventures'."

Mallen paused for breath, cast a shrewd look at Q'Jenn. "I want both of you out on what's been completed of the road network to date and to look at where the rest of the current and proposed roads are supposed to go as well as the potential metal rail tracks; you can do a lot of that in conjunction with the planning and review teams. I've been told you have some 'philosophical objections' to some of the land transporters, Q'Jenn, but I know you have mediated a number of difficult problem areas where development and protection of natural resources had to be balanced, so I'm hoping you'll bring your broader experience and views to bear in helping us sort out a useful balance here in Narelli."

"The Jedeen philosophy is not opposed to progress and we have actually contributed to many of the new technological efforts," began Q'Jenn, choosing his words carefully as some of his past comments seemed to be coming back to haunt him. He deliberately chose not to look at Ben, although he was aware that the young man was trying to repress a smile. "What we believe in is balance, harmony and responsible development. For example, in this morning's meeting, Counselor Y'Dan did not oppose the new wire lines you want to run but instead raised the question of *where* to run them; our concern is with minimizing damage both during installation and long-term use."

"So you don't have an issue with bringing more 'infernal machines', as I believe the popular press calls them, into Narelli?" asked Ben.

"I have an issue with the methods being used to build the new roads; I feel they are unnecessarily destructive and wasteful," replied Q'Jenn. "My issues with transporters have more to do with the resource use and potential pollution associated with them and in particular the reckless manner in which some of them are used. In most of the mediations I did related to expansion of transportation, we were able to create successful agreements to minimize necessary damage during implementation and create reasonable rules for use of the machines. I believe those same sorts of issues are being looked at by the World Council when they are reviewing the proposals for global transportation networks."

"Since the Jedeen have a voting membership on the Council, I can assure you from personal experience that those issues are brought up with great regularity," said Mallen. "Many of us appreciate their watchdog approach, but it does tend to frustrate some of the members who want progress and want it now."

"And the profit they believe will be associated with progress," Belessa put in firmly. "I agree with Q'Jenn that responsible development must be a key principle for the Narelli."

"I believe we are all in agreement on that point; in fact, that is one of the specific requirements of the trusteeship," said Mallen. "Once you destroy something, it cannot always be restored and I will not allow that to happen to Narelli."

"Does all that mean you have approved me continuing my project and bringing it here?" asked Ben eagerly.

"Yes. I spoke to Val just before we left Givok and he was going to have the four machines, tool kits, parts and your crew of mechanics put onto a barge; they should be here in a few days. I've set aside funds for you, and I'll speak to F'Lor about having part of one of the old stables converted to house them so you can work on them indoors."

"Thank you, Father." Ben was beaming now. "I promise you won't regret it."

"Is this another new project?" asked Belessa. "I thought Geba Placon already had the engineering activities in hand?"

Mallen waved a hand at Ben. "I'll let him explain it."

"I've been working with Geba's team on her big projects, but I also had some ideas that I've been working on during my own time. There's been a lot of discussion and debate about how to make the big steam engines on the ships function better on smaller platforms like the metal rail and land transporters as well as developments in the external combustion versus internal combustion engines." Ben was gushing enthusiastically, the most animated that Q'Jenn had seen him so far. "Val gave me resources to find some ways to make steam engines smaller and more efficient for land transporters. I've got four prototypes: a big cargo hauler, two sizes of people vehicles and a small two person rollabout." He leaned eagerly toward Belessa. "The small one was going to be a birthday present for you, Mother, but since we've had to come here I asked if I could bring everything to Narelli. I think you'll love it once I get it working properly – the steam engine will make it quiet and fast, it will be able to use renewable resources and I've been working on special hand controls so you can operate it yourself. And the bigger ones will be perfect for places like Narelli, too." Ben paused, continued much more quietly. "I wanted you to know I really do care about how you feel about the trees and all that, even if I don't always understand it very well myself."

"Oh, Ben…" Belessa took one of Ben's hands in her own and held it close. "I know, dear, and I appreciate it very much. I look forward to seeing your machine in action."

"It does mean one more thing to try to fit into the schedule," Mallen pointed out. "The Narelli transition takes priority and I don't want you ruining your health trying to work twenty-two hours every day, young man."

"Yes, sir, I understand. I'm sure we can make it work."

"I'm sure we will." Mallen nodded. "Q'Jenn, can you have a rough draft of a potential schedule with meetings for the next week and some initial longer term activities roughed out by lunch tomorrow? I want to include operations status update meetings on Monday afternoons and Thursday mornings – I've already notified F'Lor about those. The two of you should try to attend as many of those as possible; after all, normal operations need to continue despite abnormal situations such as audits."

"Aye, I can have that for you. Will you be using the manager's office?"

"We're giving Ben the manager's office; Belessa and I are taking the connecting conference room next door. Can you get one of those big writing boards to put on the wall inside that room? I'd like to have a copy of our master schedule and Ben's schedule where we can see them."

"I'm sure we can manage that," replied Q'Jenn with a nod. "Will there be anything else?"

"I know we are asking a lot of both of you," said Belessa. "But do try to include some time occasionally to do something other than work. And if you wouldn't mind, Q'Jenn, it would be nice if you could practice swordsmanship and self-defense with Ben; it's been a while since he's been able to train with someone who has advanced skills."

Q'Jenn looked at Ben, raised an eyebrow, and waited until the young man nodded in agreement, albeit a bit reluctantly. "As you wish. We'll find a way to fit that in."

"Very well, then, we'll leave you to chat. Thank you." Mallen and Belessa headed for the door.

Belessa stopped for a moment next to Q'Jenn and touched his arm. "There are some bad people out there in our beautiful forest. Please keep my son safe," she said quietly.

"I shall do my best."

Belessa nodded and left.

There was silence in the room as the two men looked at each other.

Q'Jenn slid his chair a few inches away from the table and leaned back in it. "So, I've heard what the Duke and Duchess of K'Vangil want me to do. Tell me, my young lord, what do *you* want from me?"

Ben sat up straight, tilted his head a little, eyes narrowed. "Are you serious, or are you just making fun of the naïve youngest son because I don't know enough about your damned trees?"

Ouch, thought Q'Jenn, I certainly hit some kind of nerve there; he recalled Belessa's comment about how much younger Ben was than the Duke's other children and issues that had caused. "If my use of the word 'young' offended you, I apologize. In my mind I was only trying to distinguish you from your father." He put his hands flat on the table and looked at Ben. "If others have made comments impugning your maturity or abilities, I'm afraid I can't control or speak to that. What I can speak to is the fact that the Duke and Duchess of K'Vangil clearly believe that you *will* be able to handle a difficult task that is of great importance to both of them. In addition to keeping you safe, I have been tasked to help you obtain knowledge and experience such that you will have a reasonable chance of being successful as the K'Vangil manager for Narelli. I believe that implies that I have a certain amount of authority over how we will spend our time, but I know that neither of us will be successful if I try to force-feed information that you are not receptive to hearing." Q'Jenn turned his hands over. "I would prefer that we are partners in this tasking. If there are problems with that arrangement, then we need to determine now how we are going to get this done without grating against each other every day like sandpaper or beating each other into a pulp."

"You mean that? Partners?"

"Yes." Q'Jenn kept very still except for that one word.

Ben stared down at the table for a while as a clock ticked somewhere in the distance. Finally he relaxed a bit and let a crooked smile grow on his lips. "Given that I'm the one much more likely to be pounded into a pulp, I suppose it makes sense to try to work together. I do want you to know that I'm aware that I'm a little oversensitive about being so much younger than the Duke's other children, but I heard what you said as being patronizing."

"That was not my intent, but I'll try to be more careful in the future."

"And I'll try to be more careful in what I say about the Jedeen and Guardians. I had no right to appear to be questioning your integrity earlier and I apologize for that." Ben waited a moment for Q'Jenn's nod of acknowledgement. "I would like to hear more about what you had in mind when you used the word 'partners'."

"I suspect that you've had this new set of responsibilities thrust upon you quite suddenly and have been flooded with a lot of 'thou shalts' lately, like the barrage of things to learn that we both just sat through," said Q'Jenn. "Is that a reasonable assumption?"

"Very much so." Ben grimaced. "I was getting started on a career as an engineer and was doing well at Givok. There were rumors of problems at Narelli and I had heard that the Duke was already planning on a visit to find out what was going on, but when we found out about Tol's death everything seems to have exploded. Both of my parents showed up in Givok a few days ago, there were all sorts of meetings, and the next thing I knew I was being told to pack up to go to Narelli." Ben hesitated, sighing. "I think my father just assumed that I would want the trustee position; there is certainly a lot of power and prestige associated with it. My mother did actually ask me… well, I knew how important Narelli is to her, even more so than Father, so I couldn't say no." He looked straight at Q'Jenn. "This *is* important to me, too, it's just not something that I was trained for or intended to do for most of my life. And on top of everything else, it seems like I've got to learn how to do this better than Tol to make up for his mistakes."

"That is a lot. I appreciate your honesty and yes, it is a difficult situation." Q'Jenn pulled his chair close to the table, leaned forward, twined his fingers. "When I used the word 'partners', I meant that I want you to be part of your own education. I want you to see what I'm doing and have input; for example, on this initial draft schedule we should discuss it before we present it to the Duke tomorrow, I'd like to have you come with me when I leave here to speak with F'Lor about the schedule and I'd like your suggestions on things *you* want to see and do. I'm going to be talking to you a lot or having others speak to you but it shouldn't be just a one-way flow of information – I want you to hear and say things as part of a conversation you are participating in. If you don't understand something, you should feel comfortable asking questions. I want you to start developing your own relationships as you learn more about the people you'll be working with here at Narelli as well as your own role as manager. We have a mutual goal for you to learn and understand, not just be able to regurgitate a set of contract clauses or list of outstations or last year's financial results."

"Hmmph," grunted Ben. "I'd certainly like to have a say in at least some of what's going on. The more I hear, though, the more work it sounds like we've got ahead of us."

"A tremendous amount of work, and only a few months to get through it." Q'Jenn leaned forward a bit further, his eyes intense. "I have to remind you that I'm answerable to the Duke, but within the scope of my larger responsibilities to the World Council. From my point of view, the best outcome here at Narelli is to have a new K'Vangil manager who understands the full extent of what Narelli is, the power and responsibilities he has, exercises that power conscientiously, and has a solid, trusted relationship with the people who work for him. I will push hard to help you become that person, and I know there will be times you aren't going to like what I ask you to do. So, as partners, I think we should be able to have rational discussions about disagreements and understand that I have no problem if you disagree with something, even though I can't promise that I'll change something you don't like." He straightened, let his expression shift to a quirky half smile. "Which brings me back to the question I asked with insufficient tact, what do *you* want from me in this relationship?"

Ben smiled, then looked thoughtful. "I do want to be included – if I'm going to *be* responsible for Narelli eventually, then I'd like to start *having* some responsibilities from the beginning. I like the participation part, although I suspect that means I'll have to work even harder, and I definitely want to be able to discuss what I don't understand or what I disagree with. I think we shouldn't worry about titles when we're together so informal is good for me; I don't mind if you just call me Ben if I don't have to keep spouting the whole Senior Guardian Q'Jenn every time I have a question." He paused, fingers tapping idly on the tabletop. "The sword practice my mother asked about… I really would like that now that I think about it; I enjoyed it a lot when I was younger. Oh, and absolutely I need to have some time to work on my steam engine projects." He pointed a finger at Q'Jenn. "That is incredibly important to me."

"Then we'll find time. Anything else?"

"I'm sure there will be other things. Can I think about it some more over the next few days?"

"Of course. In fact, it would probably be a good idea to have our own 'progress reviews', if you will, for just the two of us."

"That does sound good." Ben nodded. He grinned as he continued. "You know, I've had a lot of reservations and concerns about this whole thing, but I'm starting to think maybe it can work."

"I'm glad you think so," Q'Jen replied as he smiled back. "I'll remind you of that when you're complaining about your tired feet as I haul you to the top of Mount Selebo in the rain for the sake of the lovely view your father wants you to see."

That drew a laugh from Ben. "I'm sure we'll have plenty of disagreements to discuss along the way." He shook his head, started to push his chair back but stopped. "I meant to ask – where are you staying?"

"In the Jedeen complex."

"Can you move to the lodge instead? If we're going to be working together so much of the time, I'd feel better if you were close to my quarters."

Q'Jenn shrugged; it wasn't his preference, but it was a small enough sacrifice if it made Ben happy. "Certainly. I'll ask the lodge manager to identify an appropriate room and move in the morning."

"Thanks. Do we go to talk to F'Lor now?"

"That is an excellent idea - we can probably find him in his office at this time of day. We'll talk to him about the briefings the Duke wants in three days and F'Lor can probably also fill us in on most of the other meetings that are being set up between now and then."

Both men rose, shook hands and headed out, Ben with his copy of the contract held close.

*** ****

The evening was turning cool as Q'Jenn made his way down the wide covered path from the lodge, flickering lights on every third pole keeping the way visible. Halfway between the lodge and the Jedeen support complex he turned left toward the compact two-story structure that served as offices and family home for the contract manager. Three men sat in the moonlight on the broad front porch.

"Service," murmured Q'Jenn.

"Service," replied all three.

"Would you like some tea?" offered F'Lor. "Or perhaps something a bit stronger?"

"It's been a long day," replied Q'Jenn with a nod. "A little extra kick in the tea would not go amiss." He took the proffered mug and sat on a long bench next to Y'Dan.

"Did you get your young charge bundled off to bed?" M'Indu's teeth flashed white in a smile.

"We need to strike the word 'young' from our vocabulary," grimaced Q'Jenn. "Ben is very sensitive about that, although I suspect he has valid reasons. In any event, when I left him in his room he was diligently trying to read the Narelli contract." He sighed as he turned to address F'Lor. "At least he does have good manners; he asked me to thank you again for helping us sort out his draft schedule for the next few days. I think he was surprised that you had already set up all those meetings the Duke asked for this morning, but it was a good first impression and will help reinforce what the Duke told him about the importance of establishing a solid relationship with his contract manager."

"Good to know the Duke is on my side about that," said F'Lor with a little chuckle. "I think that for now I shall not give away my secret, which is really just to have an efficient staff that feeds me the information. We did have to wait for Inspector Thol to arrive late this afternoon, but S'Vano brought him around right after supper." A small sigh flitted out into the darkness. "I must say I don't envy Ben K'Ni, though. His father is putting a lot on him, and sensitive or not, his age is going to be a factor in how people see him and respond to him."

"That's one of the things we'll have to help him learn to deal with over the next few months."

"Saw your orders I did," said Y'Dan. "What actually does the Duke want you to do?"

"I'm not directly involved in clearing up criminal and financial issues, but the terms the Duke used were 'mediator' and 'mentor'. I'm supposed to help his son understand what Narelli is all about, educate him on the contract and how the contract is carried out, help him figure out what it means to be the K'Vangil trustee, and in our spare time, spar with him. Apparently, I'm also his bodyguard if we run into problems while we're out exploring." Q'Jenn shrugged. "Ben's intelligent and has admitted to me that this is not what he expected to be doing with his life but understands that the job has to be done, and I've been told that he's a hard worker. He certainly seems to be well up on many of the new technologies that the Duke wants to expand or implement, but I am a little concerned that he might be tempted to spend more time than we'll really have available on his pet projects."

"On a simple name basis already, you are?"

"Yes, sir. Ben seems very practical about some things and prefers informality between the two of us since we're going to have to work closely together." Q'Jenn set his mug aside and leaned back, one arm along the back support. "I'm taking the Duke's use of the term 'mediator' to mean ensuring that all parties get a fair and equitable outcome for this transition of the trustee manager position; I will certainly be including F'Lor in the information flow, discussions about contract work and future planning, but we want to avoid any perception that I am favoring Jedeen over K'Vangil interests."

"Is there a problem I need to be aware of?" asked F'Lor. "I did sense a certain… I guess I would call it skepticism about the Jedeen from Ben K'Ni although not outright hostility."

"I'm not entirely certain what all of his issues are, but Ben did apparently get a bad impression of us from Tol K’Sov and we need to overcome that. I know it's extra work, but I'd like to keep the trustee-contract manager relationship more formal than usual for a while. For example, I'd appreciate it if your people take extra care in documenting official meetings with the Duke, Duchess or Ben, responding quickly to questions and taskings with written follow-ups and that sort of thing. My goal is to have Ben working directly with you and your various leads within a month so I can start fading into the background instead of being his intermediary during the transition. Ideally, we'll be able to have a relationship of trust and confidence in place before the Duke leaves, but it's going to take work on both sides to get to that point."

"I agree with that approach, and I'll discuss it with my people before the briefing. Ben will be overwhelmed with information and competing demands on his time, even with both the Duke and Duchess taking care of most of the operational management and other problems for a while, so we'll look for ways we can help him without appearing to encroach on his prerogatives," replied F'Lor.

"Y'Dan and I will be meeting with the Duke and Duchess tomorrow, then leaving the day after," said M'Indu. "We don't want the Jedeen Council to be seen as trying to get unduly involved, since this should primarily be between the trustee and the contract manager. If either of you need any help with information or resources, however, don't hesitate to let us know."

Q'Jenn and F'Lor both nodded. They talked for a bit longer, but the late hour and increasing cold soon sent them to their separate beds.

*** ***

"Hey, let me get that for you." D'Rala took Q'Jenn's extra pack and they continued on toward the lodge in the early morning light. "I'd heard they made you move up to the big house. Whose idea was that?"

"Ben K'Ni asked me to move. It's actually a good idea, given how much time we're likely going to be spending together." They reached the front door and went inside. "Deverelo's people found me a nice room on the first floor that's close but not too close, if you know what I mean."

"Right." D'Rala snorted. "Better you than me. It's bad enough having to come up here for all these flipping meetings. I'm much happier out in the woods."

"You and me both." Q'Jenn waved to the two staffers at the front desk as they turned left down a long hallway. They talked shop as they negotiated a few more turns and another hall, finally reaching Q'Jenn's new room. He had just inserted the key when a frazzled-looking figure hurried toward them.

"There you are." Ben's eyes were bloodshot and he waved his copy of the hefty contract. "How do you make any sense of this miserable damned thing?" He followed them into the room and only seemed to realize that D'Rala was there when he bumped into her as she dropped Q'Jenn's pack on the bed. "Oh, hello."

"Good morning," said Q'Jenn. "This is Senior Guardian D'Rala. She's one of S'Vano's team leaders. D'Rala, this is Ben K'Ni, the Duke's son who will be taking over as the trustee manager."

"Good morning, sir." D'Rala nodded respectfully.

"Good morning, pleasure to meet you." Ben shook hands with her.

"And it's a pleasure to meet you, sir. Not to be impolite, but I need to get to a meeting elsewhere in the building," said D'Rala, "so if you'll excuse me, I'll leave you two to your work."

"Of course, of course. Nice to have met you." Ben turned back to Q'Jenn. "I thought the trust documents and road contract were bad, but I couldn't even make it through the first two chapters of this damned thing last night before I fell asleep. How am I supposed to get through all of this before F'Lor's briefing with all the other meetings we have to go to before then?"

"Were you trying to read those first two chapters after the summary or was that including the summary?"

"I skimmed the table of contents and summary, then started plowing through."

"Those two chapters are probably the most difficult – that's where the bulk of the legal and financial wording is. Just a moment and let me get something for you." Q'Jenn upended his spare pack, dumping out extra clothes and various odds and ends, while Ben ranted about the financial nightmare chapter and how so much money could be spent. "Here." He picked up a leather shoulder bag that had three internal pockets, holders for writing implements and a flap that snapped closed. "As we get time, I'll go through some of it with you, focusing on the table of contents and highlights of important sections. You can use this to carry the contract and take notes as we go. F'Lor will be providing some files for you that will be much easier to understand and use; if you'd like a bigger or different carry-bag for any of those we can get you one from supply."

Ben stood looking at the brown bag dangling from the Guardian's hand. "Why can't I just get the easy files now so I can understand what the damned contract says?"

"Ben K'Ni, do I really need to answer that question for you, sir?" Q'Jenn asked softly, standing at attention with the bag still held out. May as well get started on doing things the right way, he thought as he waited, watching the scowling face.

Finally, Ben sighed and took the carrier. "Alright, point taken." He stuffed the contract into the largest of the three internal pockets, closed the bag and slung it over his shoulder. Ben paused a moment before asking, "If I went to F'Lor and asked for the files now, would he give them to me?"

"Of course. And in three days he would give you an updated set to replace those."

"Oh." Ben chewed on the corner of his lower lip as he pondered.

"We have to stop by the Duke's office to check those calendars before our first meeting with Inspector Thol. I ate at the support dining hall before I moved, but if you've not had breakfast yet, then we'll need to be quick about it."

"Of course. Let's take care of business first."

As it turned out, they were able to eat and update the calendars at the same time. The Duke and Duchess were already in the small conference room going over news and wire reports and had requested that breakfast be delivered there. Ben grabbed a bowl of boiled cereal and coffee, while Q'Jenn described the first draft of their schedule.

The efficient lodge staff had already installed a framed board on one wall; there were large printed calendars in one section, a chalk board section and a cork section to pin papers and pictures.

"Most of this first week will be meetings and briefings except for here, Your Grace." Q'Jenn pointed to a block after F'Lor's contract briefing. "We expect the barge from Givok to arrive that afternoon so we want to get Ben's machines offloaded and brought up. Where we have some pockets of time we'll start visiting the lodge working areas this week, then move on to see the support complex. All of the times are penciled in for now, but once we have confirmation for some of the additional and ongoing meetings we'll add in longer trips out in Narelli such as the outstation visits and have new copies printed. We can also custom print whatever smaller size of the calendars you wish."

"You do your own printing here?" asked Ben as he helped himself to a pastry.

"The print shop is one of many areas used to support the operation here. Menus, guest schedules, banners, letters, documents, they can do all of that and they're always working on ways to make it simpler and faster to do. If you just need one or a few copies of something like a letter, they even have some of those direct print machines with letter keys."

"You've probably never noticed it when we were just visiting in the past, but since this is a relatively isolated location, especially in the winter, Narelli is self-sufficient in many ways," Belessa said. "And they have to be prepared to support our guests' requests, not just basic maintenance."

The clock on the wall softly chimed the quarter hour.

"We all need to head for the conference room for Inspector Thol's inbrief on the criminal investigation," said the Duke. "My clerk has already put in our schedule and I'll ask him to provide updated copies to both of you at least once a week." He drained his cup and stood. "Thank you."

*** ***

Q'Jenn sat along a wall as the big conference room filled up. It was F'Lor's show this morning and he didn't want to be a distraction, but he did make sure he had a place where he could watch the reactions of all three K'Vangils. In particular, he wanted to keep an eye on Ben. After two very long days of meetings and study he seemed tired, and last night he had been very frustrated with his clearly rudimentary understanding of the contract, but at breakfast he had also noticeably been looking forward to the arrival of his transporter machines this afternoon.

F'Lor stood at a podium which had been set up in front of the huge Narelli map. He collected the room with his eyes, nodded to three young apprentices standing by the door, then began.

"Good morning, Your Graces, Ben K'Ni. On behalf of the Jedeen Narelli support contract team, welcome to this briefing which you requested on the Narelli support contract and operations overview. Rather than trying to announce all of my leads now, I will give you a short introduction and then let each lead present his or her area. We have provided some materials which you can take with you and which we hope you will find helpful."

Q'Jenn watched Ben's eyes grow wide as the staffers each placed a box before the Duke, Duchess and Ben, then began pulling bound books and documents out.

"There is an annotated summary of the contract, an overview of the contract support personnel organization and functions, a review of our guest populations over time and projected for the future, a separate book for each major support area with missions, organizations and names, a summary of current and potential improvement projects, maps of various areas and operations within Narelli and the last item is a loose-leaf book which I have found useful for tracking work; it can be modified to meet your specific needs. Please feel free to ask questions as we proceed."

"Thank you, Senior Manager F'Lor." The Duke inclined his head. "Please continue."

Almost four hours later, F'Lor finally answered the last question and the Duke thanked everyone for all their hard work. Q'Jenn went around the table to stand beside Ben.

"Still with us?" asked Q'Jen quietly.

"I'm not sure." Ben began piling his various books and things back into their box, looking a bit like a fish that had been pulled from the lake and left too long without water. "I'm sure that was a lot of good information; I just don't know how much of it I actually understood and retained." He shook his head. "I do think I'm starting to realize why it takes so much money to run this place, though."

One of the apprentices had been hovering behind Ben, waiting to be noticed, and he cleared his throat discreetly.

Ben turned in his chair, a faint frown marring his brow. "Did you want this back? I thought I got to keep everything."

"No, sir. It's absolutely yours and anything else you'd like to ask for as well. I just need to know where you want me to take the box, sir."

"Oh… umm, please take it to the trustee manager's office. Thanks."

Q'Jenn stepped back as Ben stood and stretched. "It's not expected that you will remember everything you heard today. This is just a first round to start hearing about things and see some of the people you'll need to work with. That's why so much of it was in writing; you have references now so you can look things up. It will hopefully begin to make more sense as we visit various places, see people at work and talk to them informally."

Ben breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good to know, though I think it's going to take quite a while to figure out this contract business."

F'Lor and the two K'Vangils came to join them.

"Senior Manager F'Lor, thank you for the briefing, and especially for all written information," said Ben as he shook hands with F'Lor. "That looked like a lot of work to put together, but I greatly appreciate it."

"It is our pleasure to serve, sir. It wasn't quite as formidable a task as it might have appeared; I require all of my leads to keep a current briefing book so it was really only a matter of doing a few updates."

"It's still going to be very helpful and I look forward to the individual section meetings," replied Ben.

"We are going down to lunch if you'd care to join us," said the Duchess. "I thought we'd try the buffet today and chat with some of our current guests." One of the innovations that had been implemented a few years earlier was to put in two dining rooms, one an informal buffet and the other a formal sit-down service. The change had proved to be highly popular, especially with guests coming back from fishing, hunting, sailing or hiking day trips who were usually ravenous but too tired to dress up.

"If you don't mind, I thought we would go down to the docks and see if the barge has arrived yet. We should be able to get something to eat down there."

"I suppose we can manage to get by," replied the Duchess with an indulgent smile. "We'll see you later."

Ben waited until his parents had left with F'Lor before turning to Q'Jenn. "What's the quickest way to get down to the lake port?"

"Depends on how you were planning on getting your transporters back up here."

"Drive them, of course," said Ben impatiently as if the answer should have been obvious. "I have a team of three mechanics, so I'll drive one and they can drive the other three."

"In that case, we can get a couple of horses from the guest stable and ride down. I'll bring your mount back with me." Personally, Q'Jenn had his doubts about the reliability of Ben's plan, but the transporters were Ben's toys so presumably he had a better idea of their capabilities.

"Alright. I'm going to change clothes; I'll meet you at the guest stable in fifteen minutes."

*** ***

True to his word, promptly in fifteen minutes Ben came striding up to the open yard outside the stable. Q'Jenn noted approvingly that the nobleman had changed from his usual breeches and fine shirts to workman's leather pants, coarse cloth shirt and canvas jacket. His boots were good leather but scuffed; his only concession to rank was a silk neck scarf similar to those he always wore. Today's scarf was dark gray. At least it seemed there'd be no problem getting him into proper field gear when they had to rough it in the forest.

"Here you go," said Q'Jenn as he handed over the reins of a medium-sized bay gelding. "His name's Rory. The groom said he's solid but not excitable so all the bustle at the docks shouldn't bother him." He waited to see if Ben would need any help.

"Thanks." Ben easily mounted and settled himself in the saddle, taking a moment to get comfortable. He made a small moue and asked Q'Jenn to shorten the stirrups a notch, then indicated he was ready to go.

Q'Jenn mounted his own horse, only briefly regretting that he'd not had time to fetch Montel from the Jedeen stable. They kept to a sedate walk until they were out on the road leading down to the lake. This road was in frequent use and had been widened to provide a paved two-lane section and fine gravel shoulders wide enough for three horses abreast. Ben pushed the pace to a trot, then a slow lope. Q'Jenn hung back a little to observe Ben's riding abilities.

Ben must have noticed Q'Jenn's scrutiny and slowed Rory to a walk until he was side by side with Q'Jenn. "I do know how to ride a horse if that's what you're worried about." His tone was a bit testy. "I can ride, do my own tack, harness up two and four horse teams, drive a wagon and I can ride those two-wheel cycles, too."

"That's good to know," replied Q'Jenn mildly. "How much rough country riding have you done? The sort where there's no path at all, you have to scramble up and down hill, ford small rivers and where you might be in the saddle all day?"

"Is that going be necessary?"

"Narelli is a very big place; there are still a lot of parts that are difficult to get to. Parts that many of the support people have to visit routinely and I'm not just referring to the security teams. Not only do you need to see a few of those places, but you need to understand what your people go through to get their jobs done." Q'Jenn added dryly, "It helps preclude embarrassing questions, like nagging F'Lor about why it takes so long to do a simple forest or water health survey or scope out potential new guest camping locations."

"Oh, well, I suppose it would." They rode in silence for a few minutes before Ben continued. "What you called rough country riding… I haven't done anything quite that extreme. I've done long rides and camped out in forests." He was silent for another minute, then seemed to almost be speaking just to himself. "When I was young, my mother used to go out with me. She had a special saddle with a high front and back with security straps… her horse was well trained but we still had to stick to gentle paths. After Maella died though, mother just didn't seem interested in riding any more. Or maybe she just got too busy, I don't know." Ben sighed, then shook his head and turned in his saddle to look at Q'Jenn. "If that's what we need to do, I'll do it. Right now, though, I've got other things to think about." Ben straightened, urging his horse back into a lope.

Q'Jenn followed, tucking away this new bit of information, and concentrated on the road ahead.

As the lakeside port came into view, Ben stood in his stirrups and eagerly looked at the facility. There were four large ship docks, two smaller docks and further over a series of berthing areas for small sailing ships, fishing boats and canoes. The support buildings included warehouses, offices, guest lounges, a small stable, repair facility, dining facility and lodging for the full-time support people. Everything was neat and tidy. The only vessel present at the moment, however, was a supply ship tied up at one of the large docks.

"Damn! I was hoping the barge would be here already." Ben's face mirrored the disappointment in his voice.

Q'Jenn shaded his eyes and scanned across the lake. He pointed with one arm. "Look, just coming into sight by Windgrove Island. That's probably them."

"I think you're right." Ben watched a moment. "It's going to take them at least another half hour to pull in and get docked. Let's go drop the horses off and see if we can get something to eat."

They urged the horses into a trot and headed down the last slope.

It was actually closer to an hour before the heavy barge was tied up and side ramps secured so the precious cargo could be unloaded. Q'Jenn watched from a comfortable perch, munching an apple he had brought with him after lunch, as Ben hopped onto the vessel.

"This where those transporters need to be taken ashore?" A heavyset man in a drab coverall and workboots was looking at the barge.

"There should be four of them," said Q'Jenn with a nod. "I'm not sure how much other cargo there might be."

"Ayem." The man pulled a manifest from a back pocket, scrutinized it. He yelled back down the dock, "Bring the horses, Wallup," then wandered onto the barge. The jingling harness announced the arrival of two massive draft horses set up with a tow rig.

Q'Jenn watched with interest as three transporter vehicles were each winched out of the barge and pulled down the dock to a parking area. The first was a large cargo carrier, basically a chassis with an operator space at the front and a big wooden box on the back. The next two were evidently for people; one had two seats in front and a bench in back while the other had a series of benches under a canvas top. They looked rough and unfinished.

"Hey, Q'Jenn! Give us a hand!" Ben had evidently decided not to wait for the horses to return. He and two people about his own age were pushing a small four-wheel transporter with two seats off the barge. They stopped and waited at the edge of the ramp. "Trena, you steer and the rest of us will push."

A young blonde woman in work clothes settled in the left seat and adjusted a few controls. "Okay, brakes and steering are working. I'm ready."

Q'Jenn obligingly helped push the vehicle all the way to where the other transporters were parked, waited while Ben gave all of them a once-over before signing the manifest for delivery. He smiled at the proprietary pride and special little pats Ben had for each one. "Is this everything that was supposed to be sent?" he asked.

"Should be." Ben turned to a grizzled middle-aged man with dirty blond hair. "Trov, were you able to get everything we need?"

"Your brother's a man of his word, sir; got everything we were promised and scrounged up a few more parts and tools, too. It's all in the back of the big girl along with our gear. For some of the heavy-duty and body work, though, we're going to have to find a machine shop, or at least a decent smithy and woodworking tools."

"I'm sure they've got something like that here; we just need to find it." Ben turned to Q'Jenn. "I thought I heard something about repair facilities in the briefing this morning, right?"

"The main shop is in the Jedeen complex and there's a smaller shop in the outbuildings behind the lodge. As word of your interests gets out to more people, I've no doubt you'll have plenty of our engineers willing to show you around." Q'Jenn nodded toward Ben's companion with a lifted eyebrow.

"Right, where are my manners?" Ben gave himself a mock slap to his head and grinned. "This is my head mechanic, general fixer-upper and worker of miracles, Trov Heeraut. Trov, this is Senior Guardian Q'Jenn. He's supposed to help me figure out how to be the Narelli trustee here." As the two men were shaking hands, the two young people came forward. "And this is the rest of my crew, Trena Heeraut and Trent Heeraut." Both had an obvious family similarity to Trov, although Trent's hair was so dark blond it was almost brown. They shook hands with Q'Jenn, then disappeared into the back of the big transporter.

"We got a place for the girls, sir? Don't cotton much to having to work on 'em in the mud."

"We have a whole building all to ourselves! They've cleared out one of the outbuildings up at the lodge for working space, put new doors on it, and fixed up the loft with nice snug quarters. I'm sure you'll like it. The food's good, too, so I know Trent will love it."

Q'Jenn shifted impatiently. "And the plan for getting these things up to the lodge?" asked Q'Jenn, trying not to look bored. "You said you were going to try to drive them? Or do you want to have some horses standing by as a precaution?"

"We *are* going to drive them." Ben turned to Trov, his lips tight. "Go ahead and get everything fired up. I'll be there in a minute."

"Aye, sir. We'll have 'em chugging along nice and sweet for you."

"Thanks, Trov." Ben pulled Q'Jenn aside. "Look, I saw your expression and I know what you're thinking, but they are not 'things' or 'pieces of junk'. They might be prototypes, but we've already made significant improvements over most of the other engines out there. I will admit that they still need work to perfect them, but those vehicles are *my* life, the only piece of my own that I still have left after being dragged out here. I've promised to work hard at this trustee business even though it's not something I wanted to do, so I would appreciate a little more consideration or at least not making your opinion so obvious in front of my people."

"My tasking is to try to get you ready to be that trustee. I'm sorry it's not what you want, but it's what we both have to work toward. I will point out that, without argument, I already allocated a significant amount of time this week for your private project in what is a seriously crowded schedule and am willing to consider giving you additional time when we can do so without compromising our task." Q'Jenn inclined his head. "I apologize if you thought I was being disrespectful of something that is clearly important to you. May I suggest a compromise – I will not refer to your vehicles as 'things' or 'pieces of junk' if you will stop referring to 'damned trees'."

Ben looked at Q'Jenn for a long moment, his jaw working. Finally, he took a deep breath, holding it before slowly letting it out. "Alright. Fair enough." He turned to go, throwing back over his shoulder, "I'll see you at the lodge later."

"And a good day to you, too, young sir," muttered Q'Jenn.

*** ***

Q'Jenn knocked briefly before entering Ben's office and sitting down in the chair next to the manager's desk. Ben had several of F'Lor's contract files spread out in front of him but seemed distracted. "Good morning," said Q'Jenn.

"Morning." Ben glanced up before returning his gaze to one of the organization charts. He yawned as he squinted at one particularly complex layout.

"I take it everything went well with your trip back from the port?" Q'Jenn had not waited around but instead had gone to search out the support team responsible for boats, lake operations and fishing. After he chatted with them about a couple of potential lake trips he had collected the two horses and headed home. Although he had been fairly certain that Ben would make it back one way or another, Q'Jenn had taken his notes to work on and found a comfortable spot in the trees along the road, waiting until he saw the ragged little procession arrive before retreating to the lodge.

"Took a little longer than I had expected to get all four vehicles running, but we made it back with no major problems. Had kind of a late night getting everything worked out the way we wanted it and my team settled in but things are fine for now."

"Good. If you've got a few minutes, I'd like to discuss potential schedule ideas for the next two months. We need to finalize at least this next three to four weeks but the rest can be tentative until we see how things are going. I've been talking to a number of people, including F'Lor and some of his leads, and they've given me some good ideas on places and activities they feel would help us best meet the Duke's objectives." Q'Jenn placed a small stack of papers on the edge of the desk.

"Sure." Ben cleared a space on the large desk and leaned back in his chair as Q'Jenn spread out the papers, which included a blank calendar sheet and maps of various parts of Narelli.

"This sheet has the meetings we know about and we can pencil those in, but some of these other things could take anywhere from a day to several days, so we're going to have to start setting priorities and making decisions about which meetings not to attend. For example, these operational status meetings are twice a week…." Q'Jenn looked up. "Ben, is something wrong?"

Ben was still sitting back in his chair, tapping a finger on the arm. He looked up from the table, clearing his throat. "Look, about yesterday... I was so excited about my machines getting here that I forgot that not everybody feels the way I do about some things and I sort of over-reacted way too quickly. You did put a big chunk of time for me on the schedule yesterday and I appreciate that because it was time I really needed to get my people set up with things I want them to work on. I'm sorry if we seem to get cross-ways to each other sometimes and I'll try to do better."

"Consider it part of the learning experience," Q'Jenn shrugged. "Everybody has things they like and dislike; the trick is to learn how to work with all sorts of people who don't necessarily want what you want." He glanced at the wall clock. "Tell you what, it's still quite early and we don't have to be at the audit update until 10:30. Let's take fifteen minutes to sketch out a schedule, then get out of here and take a walk down to tour the Jedeen complex. After the audit meeting we can come back here to review the schedule and see if it's still what we want to do."

"Alright, thanks. That sounds like a good plan."

Twenty minutes later they were striding down the path. The morning chill was just starting to wear off so they moved quickly, with a short stop at F'Lor's office to get a sketch map of the Jedeen complex from F'Lor's clerk.

"You've seen quite a bit of the lodge support areas, offices, maintenance, kitchens, laundry, medical clinic and rooms for many of the people who work there full-time."

"Right. Most of what I've seen so far, except the lake port, is like a big hotel so I understand why most of that is in the basement or back… we don't want the guests to be aware of the infrastructure. I still need to visit the rest of the lodge outbuildings pretty soon. I've only been to a few of those."

"Well, a hotel in the woods, and we can cover the other outbuildings in between meetings. But Narelli is much bigger than just the lodge. F'Lor has people living at the port, outstations and some security posts, but everybody else generally lives here in the support complex."

Q'Jenn spoke briefly to friends and acquaintances as they went through the main stables, lodging buildings, communal dining, lounge and training areas, warehouses, supply, labs where the various forestry, water and resource teams monitored the health of Narelli and maintained their records, administrative offices, another medical clinic. At each stop, Q’Jenn introduced Ben to key people and helped him match faces, places and functions to the charts of his contract and organization summaries.

"We've only got a half hour left, so we'll just make one more stop this morning. We can come back and visit some more later." Q'Jenn smiled as he led Ben toward two long buildings connected by a breezeway, knowing that this was the one place that Ben was probably most interested in. "We'll go in this end first, since that's where some of the offices are."

They entered a battered wooden door into a large open space with desks scattered about and large chalkboards on almost every wall. Ben's eyes lit up as he seemed to immediately recognize scribbles that meant nothing to Q'Jenn. "So this is where your engineers hang out!" said Ben.

"Some of the time. They have another building by the lodge also." Q'Jenn spotted two Jedeen who had been with them in the meetings on future technology planning and the road contract review. "N'Geroso! P'Domo! Service, gentlemen. Do you have a few minutes to spare?"

"Service, sir. Anything for our fearless and esteemed Senior Guardian." N'Geroso was about thirty with a cheeky smile and bright blue eyes. P'Domo was older and simply nodded as he trailed behind.

"You remember Ben K'Ni, the Duke's son?"

"Of course, you were at some of those interminable meetings. I hear you're an engineer, not one of those sit-around-on-your-arse admin types," said N'Geroso. "Pleased to meet you, sir."

"Engineering is my first love, although it looks like I'll be doing my share of managing for a while," replied Ben as he shook hands with both of the Jedeen. "I've got some prototype transporters that just came in yesterday; we're working on some new ideas in making better steam engines and I hope to find some time to keep doing that."

"Excellent! We've been trying to get things moving for a while on expanding the roads here and using more transporters as well as automation in general. Have you seen those ridiculously clunky things they have at the lodge garage?"

"We came up from the lake in a couple of those when we arrived, but I haven't had time to give them a close look with everything else they've had me doing," admitted Ben.

"There are other types of transport besides engine-driven ones," interjected P'Domo.

"P'Domo is holding out for better two-wheelers to add to our inventory," N'Geroso confided in Ben.

"They are remarkably efficient modes of transportation as well as providing healthful exercise. I simply think we should include those in planning for improvements to our transportation network," replied P'Domo with dignity.

"Variety is good," said Ben diplomatically. "Do you have a machine shop here I could use occasionally? And maybe a woodworking shop somewhere?"

"Ben K'Ni, you have come to the right place, sir! We have metal, wood and leather here, the best for two hundred miles around, and a smaller shop up by the lodge that does the maintenance repairs up there. We also have some of the best engineers, techs, mechanics, carpenters, you name it and we have somebody who can make it, build it or fix it," enthused N'Geroso. "Let me show you!" He practically dragged Ben down a short hallway and through a door. "This building is all metal and smith work – the other building through the end door is leather and wood. Some of the big projects are in the next building over."

"Oh! My!" Ben stopped and stared, transfixed. Down each side of the building were workbenches and cubbies with tools huge, large and small; at the far end was a full blacksmith layout with racks of tools and bins of supplies. He started walking slowly through the middle, a huge grin on his face, trying to take it all in.

"It's quiet right now, most of our people are out working on other things or next door, but if you'd like to come back and chat we'd love to have you."

"Absolutely! This is fantastic!" Ben stopped at one workbench. "You're working on internal combustion engines?"

"There is quite a debate about the merits of internal versus external combustion engines, sir," said P'Domo, "so we have people working on both types."

For ten minutes the three engineers engaged in an animated discussion, most of which Q'Jenn did not understand. Finally, he had to break in. "Excuse me, but I have to get Ben K'Ni to an audit meeting. I'm afraid we'll need to leave now to make it on time."

"Unfortunately, Q'Jenn is right," said Ben reluctantly. "I'd like my people to come down if you don't mind showing them around."

"I don't have any specific taskings until after lunch, so I would be happy to go find them and take them around our facilities here and at the lodge if you like," offered N'Geroso.

"That would be wonderful and I really appreciate your help. They are in outbuilding 17; look for Trov Heeraut." Ben shook hands, taking one last look around before he and Q'Jenn started the walk back toward the lodge.

"Have you been holding out on me?" Ben consulted his sketch map, looking very closely at it. "There's nothing on here that says what those buildings were, just numbers. But that was the best thing I've seen since I got here."

"A number of buildings have been re-purposed over the years, so I suspect it was easier to just number some of them and there hasn't been time for detailed tours," replied Q'Jenn blandly. "You know how many meetings we've had to attend."

"Right," grunted Ben. He was silent the rest of the trip, but there was a broad smile on his lips the entire way.

*** ***

The small conference room was quiet except for the ticking of the wall clock as its hands swung toward half past ten. The window showed only gentle blackness outside. Q'Jenn penciled in a few more long-term entries on Ben's schedule, then stepped back to review both of the schedules on the big board, and nodded.

Ben wandered in through the open connecting door to his manager's office and plopped down at the end of the table, laying down several of his contract files. He looked up at his parents' schedule as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Looks like they're pretty busy, too, so I guess I can't really complain about being tired. Is it going to be like this all the time?"

"Things are worse than usual now because of the transition problems. It will never be an easy job if you take it seriously, but once you settle in to it, the more you know, the less time you will have to spend on routine issues and the more time you will have available to work on things like planning and oversight. Some times of the year are busier than others just because of seasonal events. The audit is always a major pain and I expect your first one by yourself is going to be particularly miserable because they will be looking at you very closely."

"You mean because of what Tol did?"

"That and the fact that many concerned parties will want to know if you've figured out how to do your job." Q'Jenn propped a hip on the edge of the table as he looked down at Ben.

Ben snorted. "Is that the polite way of saying they'll want to find out if I know my arse from a hole in the ground?"

"Pretty much." Q'Jenn smiled. "When there's money involved, a lot of people are very interested. And some of them won't hesitate to hand you your arse on a platter if they think it necessary, regardless of rank or wealth."

"I'm glad Val promised to help me keep an eye on that part, especially since so much of that money is coming from Givok. I'm sure he wants his audit to come out clean, too. And Father has already told me that he's leaving all the key staff people in place here."

"I wouldn't be surprised if the Duke sends Randel down occasionally to check up on things in addition to visiting himself. Randel did a good job managing Narelli and Givok, so he knows what needs to be done at both places."

"Hmmm, I hadn't thought of that, but I suspect you're right." Ben sighed. At Q'Jenn's eyebrow going up in a question mark, he continued. "Randel's fine. He's a lot like my father in many ways, and I'm sure he'll make a good successor. It's just, well, he's almost thirty years older than me. He means well but he seems to find it hard to remember that I'm not still ten years old."

Any response from Q'Jenn was cut off as the door to the outer hallway opened to admit the Duke and Duchess.

"Sorry we're late, meeting went long," said Mallen as he waved off Q'Jenn's bow. "Let's keep things simple, please." They settled at the table where they had a clear view of the big board. "We've just finished with Inspector Thol and his people. The deeper they dig on the criminal side, the worse it looks for Tol. Seems he was involved with some pretty nasty people who are still out there looking to make money off Narelli. Guardian S'Vano has his teams running extra patrols; the additional people the Jedeen promised should be here in the morning, so he can increase coverage of guest trips. Q'Jenn, Thol has asked if you can find time to talk to his team about those poachers you brought in a while back."

"Of course, sir. I'll take care of that tomorrow."

"Thanks. Now, do you gentlemen have a schedule update for us?"

"Yes, we do." Q'Jenn went to the board. "We're looking at this next four weeks as being pretty solid unless something else critical comes up, then the four weeks after that are things that need to be done but we want to leave some flexibility in the dates for a while. I'm hoping that in the next week or so we can get a better idea of when the audit and other ongoing events will be wrapped up." Q'Jenn briefly discussed what they had already accomplished, then covered the upcoming plans.

"That's quite a bit already for only having been here, what… six days now?" said Belessa. "Seems like it's been longer, but I suppose time feels different when you're so busy."

"But there's still so much more to do." Mallen swept a hand across the general area of the calendar. "I'm a little concerned that there don't appear to be any days off for the entire two months, though. Too much work can dull the senses and spirit."

"We did consider that, Father." Ben leaned forward and pointed. "You'll see that there are several afternoons labeled as 'Eng Proj 1'. That's time I asked for to work on my prototypes; I consider that recreational work, so to speak, because I enjoy it so much." He looked at Belessa. "And we will add in sparring on some of the field trips or if we have an extra hour or two on other days."

"That's a good point," added Q'Jenn. "Here, for example, we're taking a tour of the lake perimeter, so we can spar when we stop for lunch; that will be a good break from spending most of the day on a boat. And I can usually bring a couple of wooden practice swords on our trips, especially if we're travelling by horse or boat."

"Are you planning on going out on guest trips or by yourselves?" asked Mallen.

"I've tried to use guest events that are already scheduled where I felt it was reasonable to do so," replied Q'Jenn. "That will reduce the need for separate security and will provide an opportunity for Ben to mingle with the guests."

"Ah, good. That was something I've been meaning to mention, Ben." Belessa turned to her son. "I know you've been busy, but I do want you to make a point of talking to our guests, and to your people even if you need to formally schedule that on your personal calendar. Part of our trust is to make Narelli accessible for the people of the world, and it is helpful to get feedback from our guests about what is going well or not, what they enjoyed doing and their suggestions." She smiled wryly. "It's not always enjoyable as we do get some unpleasant or demanding guests occasionally, but it is still useful – dealing with a bad visitor will let you know what the workers have to put up with. Have a meal in one of the dining rooms, go on their trips, stop by the entertainment like the dance tomorrow, chat with them when they check in or check out."

"Just watch out for some of the high-ranking guests," Mallen grunted, his nose wrinkling as if he had just encountered a nasty smell. "They ought to have the manners to know better, but too often they demand to be waited on hand and foot with special privileges. Don't let those types ruin the experience for everybody else. If you have any problems along that line, then talk to Deverelo, the lodge manager. He has some staffers who are very good at handling those situations."

"Thank you, for both comments," said Ben.

Belessa studied the schedule, then nodded. "You're covering four of the nine outstations this month… those are good choices, definitely the most important ones." She smiled. "I see you're going to do Station Nine a month from now."

"I think that by that point Ben will have earned a treat," said Q'Jenn. "I also thought we might try a different route by following the new road north of the lake as far as it goes in that direction, then hike the rest of the way to get a feel for some of the terrain where they'll be looking at putting in road extensions."

"By the time you get there going that way he will have definitely earned the visit." Belessa turned to Mallen. "Please put me on our schedule for those same dates, dear, and you can handle things here for a few days. I love that part of the forest and I've been wanting to visit Station Nine for quite some time. It will be wonderful to join Ben up there."

"What's so special about Station Nine?" Ben scowled, wary of a joke at his expense. "According to what I was told, it's not nearly ready to open to the public yet." Then he must have realized what Belessa had just said. "Mother? You aren't serious, are you? Even the gravel road up to there is not finished yet – the map just showed dirt paths. It's too dangerous."

"Ben, you are a wonderful son and I love you dearly." Belessa put a hand on Ben's arm. "But I am not made of glass and I do not break easily." She put a finger on Ben's mouth as he started to protest. "There are safe and reasonable ways to do things, I will have an escort and I. Will. Be. Fine." She leaned back in her wheelchair, her arms folded, green eyes daring anyone to challenge her.

"Father? Are you going to let her do this?" Ben was almost spluttering.

"Oh no, you're not dragging me into the middle of this." Mallen held his hands up. "I'm supposed to be the stubborn one, but there is no force of nature that can overcome your mother if you try to tell her she can't do something. I'll make sure she has all the help I can persuade her to accept, but that is it."

Q'Jenn suspected that she planned to make most of the trip by boat and he knew that from the boat landing the last stretch up into the woods normally should not be unreasonably difficult, but he didn't expect the Spirit-spiked feeling of cold dismay that suddenly hit his gut. "Belessa," he almost whispered. "I know you want this, but if it rains on that mountain…"

Belessa looked at Q'Jenn for a long moment, then sighed as her expression softened. "Stubbornness is one thing, but stupidity is something else altogether." She nodded slightly. "If it's raining badly, I won't go, of course."

"Thank you." Q'Jenn had to turn his face away to let his held breath escape quietly.

Mallen and Ben were looking at each other with mystified surprise. "Is there something I should know?" demanded Mallen.

"No, dear," Belessa patted her husband's arm gently. "Q'Jenn was just doing his job by reminding me about common sense; nothing there for you to worry about." She changed to a brisk tone. "I'm quite satisfied with Ben's proposed schedule. How are you coming along with understanding the contract and how it relates to the work here?" She sat looking expectantly at her son.

Caught off guard by the abrupt change of subject, Ben floundered for a few seconds. "Um… well, it's kind of scary in a way." He attempted a smile as he spread documents from his stack and pulled out a few. "I still have a lot of questions but I think some of this is actually making sense." He picked up one sheet of paper. "For example, the contract seems to be quite flexible about how the manager allocates funds, but since the audit is all about money I've been trying to match up some of the funding numbers to functions that are supposed to be provided. I don't understand this security section; some of it looks fine for physical security like locks and fences but there's a big piece here for Jedeen Guardians and associated support. I thought the World Council was already paying the Jedeen clan for Guardians, so why are we also paying for that?"

"The World Council pays the Jedeen a stipend to maintain a pool of unattached Guardians, including training for candidates and refresher training for warranted Guardians," said Q'Jenn. "What you are paying for is a group of attached Guardians."

"I don't understand the difference." Ben shook his head. "I know you explained about Junior and Senior Guardians, but what's an 'attached' Guardian?"

"Unattached Guardians are available for direct tasking by the World Council or major departments like the world police. I am unattached and that's why the Duke was able to get the Council to assign me here. Attached Guardians have been assigned to work at a specific place for various periods of time – the Narelli has a group of attached guardians responsible for security, safety and law enforcement. Whoever they are attached to pays for the direct service, but you get the benefit of having warranted officers instead of having to develop your own police force. You also get a partial benefit because the World Council stipend covers the work performed here by apprentices in training to be Guardians. The Jedeen periodically pull Guardians back home for training of their own or to assist with training candidates for Guardian or to give them a break, but they are supposed to provide suitable replacements when they do that. Depending on the size or difficulty of missions, a Senior Guardian might have Juniors or apprentices along on a mission to assist or for training experience."

"Okay, I understand that now. So both you and S'Vano are Senior Guardians, but you are unattached and he is attached, right?"

"That is correct."

Ben nodded slowly. "And this bit for research and development?"

"That one is rather open-ended," put in Mallen. "My father actually had that clause added on one of the renewals. He wanted access to engineers and technicians that he could direct to work on things that could be useful here, whether it was a better septic tank, an intercom system for the lodge or the transporter work that's going on now. Once the trustee manager, which will be you," he pointed at Ben, "and I approve a proposal and it's implemented, then it becomes part of the infrastructure maintenance clause."

"Very nice." Ben smiled.

"Don't get too carried away with that one. That is not an unlimited fund for you to play with – I won't even look at any proposal that the contract manager has not also recommended."

"Yes, Father, I understand." Ben looked at his sheet. "Just one more for tonight. Is it true that we have our own coal mine in Narelli?"

"Ah, you caught that… very good. We have many resources and capabilities that we don't advertise to the public, son. That's part of what you have to learn, and I asked F'Lor not to make everything obvious in his documents to see how far you dig into them," said Mallen. "Up in the northeast corner of the forest there is a coal mine, an iron mine, a small rock quarry and waterwheels for power. Throughout the forest we do judicious logging and careful replanting. Those are just a few examples of some of the ways we try to be self-sufficient, but we are always very careful to only use what we need and to mine or harvest with as little damage as possible. We still have to import a number of raw and finished materials as well as food, but we can build or make more than you might think." Mallen shrugged. "It's all there in the contract and the audit reports once you learn to read the 'fine print'. Before Belessa and I leave we'll go over everything with you and F'Lor to make sure you have a complete picture."

"Wow." Ben blew out a big breath. He pulled out two sheets and stared down at them. "The more I learn the less surprised I am at the amount of money and number of employees on the support contract."

"We like to think of them as partners in Narelli," said Belessa gently.

"Um… it's a contract and we pay them money, a *lot* of money, to do work for us." Ben's brow was furrowed. "By definition the Jedeen and whoever else they pay out of our contract money are employees. Right?"

"Don't worry about it right now, Ben. It's late and we all need sleep." Mallen stood up and stretched.

As Mallen pushed Belessa's chair toward the door, Q'Jenn caught the pointed glance that told him he still had a lot of 'mentoring' to do. He acknowledged it, but his mind was more focused on the need to meditate about the unexpected message the Spirit seemed to have sent him about Belessa's proposed trip.

*** ***

"It will only take a few minutes, so let's just get it taken care of."

Ben was reluctantly following Q'Jenn toward the medical clinic in the lodge. It was almost midnight and there was no one else around except for the front desk staff and a small group in one of the lounges engaged in a heated card game. "I don't like doctors or healers or whatever. It's just a little sunburn and I'll be fine."

"It is not a 'little' sunburn. I can already see your face turning red; we need to get this fixed or it will be a lot worse tomorrow."

They had spent the day on the lake in the company of a group of ten guests on an elegant sailboat. The purpose of the trip for the guests was a tour of the perimeter of the lake, enjoying a quiet day of sightseeing, swimming and a picnic lunch ashore. Ben had spent most of his day annotating maps of the lake to demonstrate to Q'Jenn that he could recognize the major and minor waterways that entered the lake, where they came from, their role in the transportation networks and which outstations, if any, were on which waterways. He had also spent some time socializing with various guests, impressing Q'Jenn with his charm and easy manners. Ben's gallantry had extended to offering his hat to a young lady who lost hers during lunch. The combination of an unusually bright sun and Ben's resultant lack of head covering, coupled with a reluctance to use the protective lotion offered by the ship's crew because it 'smelled too feminine', had resulted in a sunburn.

"Dammit, I don't need to be here."

"Well, we are here now, so be quiet and cooperate. I'm not answering to your parents in the morning if you show up looking like an overcooked crustacean."

A Jedeen healer came out of a back room. "Good evening. I'm Doctor G'Lovat." He took one look at Ben. "Ah, sunburn, eh? Just on your face or other places also?"

“My face," mumbled Ben. Under Q'Jenn's withering stare, he added, "and the backs of my hands, but not so bad there."

"Please have a seat here and let me see what the damage is."

Ben sat in the heavy leather chair, tensing when the doctor pushed a lever that reclined the chair about halfway back. He tensed even more when the doctor lightly touched various parts of his face.

"No damage to the neck, I see."

"I always wear a scarf."

"That is good, but I'm afraid we need to do something about the rest of this. Your ears and nose in particular will start to blister soon, but we may as well take care of it all now. Tell me, sir, have you been treated by a Jedeen healer before?"

Q'Jenn wondered at Ben's hesitation; Jedeen healers were not that unusual where there were large population concentrations, and those who had access usually greatly preferred them.

"A few times."

"Good. I'm going to get you some ointment to apply the next few days and some lotion you should apply if you're out in the sun again. I'll be right back." The healer went through a door that presumably led to wherever he kept his supplies.

"We don't really need to do this," muttered Ben. "I'll just take the damned medicine and go."

"Is there some kind of problem, Ben?"

"No," snapped Ben. "I just want to get this over with."

The healer returned with two tubes and placed them on a small table next to Ben's chair. He then pulled up a stool, seated himself and squeezed a small amount of clear ointment on his fingers. "Just relax while I apply this. It is both an antiseptic and pain reliever." He grinned a little. "The rest of it comes from me."

Ben just looked pained as the healer placed his fingertips on Ben's face, closed his eyes and began feathering on the ointment. In the wake of his fingers' path, the angry red slowly dissipated until Ben's face was almost his normal color. The healer repeated the treatment on the backs of Ben's hands.

"There we go. That should take care of the problem; the ointment is really just a precaution but it will deal with any lingering after effects. If you go out in the sun, apply a light coat of the lotion. It doesn't take much and won't show on your skin. Any questions?"

Ben got up and took the two tubes, reading the labels on each. "No, I've got it. Thanks."

"You're quite welcome, sir. If you have any other problems, please stop by and see us."

Ben nodded and left, trailed by Q'Jenn after he had also thanked Dr. G'Lovat.

"I don't understand why you were making such a fuss. I thought he did a good job and was fast," said Q'Jenn.

"I don't…" Ben stopped and turned around. "Look, it reminds me of some things. Just leave it alone," he barked. He turned and went on up the corridor.

Q'Jenn let him go, muttering to himself, "Something odd there." He stayed where he was until Ben was out of sight before shrugging and heading to his room.

*** ***

"It looks like we have everything covered; copies of the contract, survey results showing the route discrepancies, photographs of the deficient areas, financial records and depositions." The Duke looked at the neat stacks of paper lining the long conference table. "The meeting will start tomorrow morning at nine. We expect a confrontational meeting and that they will try to contest each point, but our response will be professional and factual. Any questions?" He waited a moment but no one spoke. "Very well. I'd like to thank everybody for all the work you've put in. Let's go to lunch."

The Duke came over to Ben and Q'Jenn as the various legal, financial and engineering people filed out.

"What time are you leaving this afternoon?" he asked.

"About one, sir. Since we're driving the road north of the lake in a few weeks, today we're staying south of the lake." Ben pointed to their route on a map in front of him. "We'll leave from here, swing by the port and then head out to the end of what's been finished so far, about 31 miles of the 59 on that leg. We'll go straight out, then come back slowly so I can get a closer look at what's physically on the ground, especially those route deviations and waste areas. It will be a great opportunity to get some road miles in for one of my transporters, too."

"Did you have any questions about the contract? I don't think we'll get a huge fight on the financial irregularities; we've got too much proof. Given that the company president and two of his people went into hiding shortly after Tol was killed, most of us expect that the acting president will just try to pile all the blame on them. There are big financial penalties and the future of the contract itself at stake, though."

"I'm pretty comfortable with all the main points. It's a much smaller and more specific contract than the support contract, so I've been able to follow the discussions pretty well. Everybody's been very good about helping me sort things out."

"Good. Have a safe trip and we'll see both of you tonight." The Duke nodded as both men stood up, then left.

"I'm going to have lunch with Mother," said Ben. "I asked my people to have a vehicle fired up and ready to leave at one, so I'll meet you there about a quarter of. We can take a quick spin on the outbound leg; it'll be fun."

"Not too fast," cautioned Q'Jenn. "We don't need any accidents."

"Don't be such a damned killjoy." Ben gave an exasperated snort. "I keep telling you it's perfectly safe if you know what you're doing."

"We'll see."

Q'Jenn took advantage of the break to go to the Jedeen complex. He found S'Vano and they chatted about the progress of the criminal investigations and updates to security risk areas while they ate, but he took care to be back promptly. The wide doors were open on the building given over to Ben's project so he went inside. Q'Jenn waited a moment to let his eyes adjust to the relative dimness; when he looked around, he saw four people huddled around the smallest vehicle.

As he approached the group, Q'Jenn could see that it clearly looked like a much more finished product. The metalwork was smooth and polished, as was much of the woodwork. There was only one seat on the left side and the back held what Q'Jenn presumed was the engine compartment.

"Excuse me, but will we be leaving shortly?" asked Q'Jenn.

Ben looked up. "Yes, right on time. Balli is already fired up." He hooked a thumb over his shoulder to the machine closest to the door. "I just need a couple of minutes to talk to my team about some things we're trying to work out for the wheelchair ramp on Berna."

Q'Jenn nodded and walked over to inspect the machine. It was still rough around the edges but seemed sturdy enough, four wheels with rubber tires, a metal frame with wood floor and sides, metal fenders, two cushioned seats in front, a bench and up front the engine area with its horizontal cylindrical boiler and firebox under a metal hood. He could hear a quiet hissing but little else. In the back deck there were containers of water, a box of coal, road tools like a shovel and ax and what he presumed was a toolbox, all neatly tied in place.

"Nice, isn't she? Balli is our design for a general runabout." Ben patted a front fender affectionately. "We put a water-tubed boiler in her to run the engine, much better than the old flued boilers, and we're still working on improvements to the condenser, as well as how to recapture the most heat, but she runs fine, burns about any fuel, even petroleum derivatives, and is simple to operate. Right now, we're working on a flash boiler for Berna with kerosene fuel but I'm not happy with the final design yet." He stopped and waited as if expecting a response other than a blank look. "Did any of that mean anything to you? Or do you just not care what I'm trying to do with these 'things'?"

"I get the part that there's a fire that heats water and that makes the machine go." Q'Jenn shook his head. "You named them?"

"Of course. You name horses, why not transporters? Berna is the small one we're building for the Duchess, this one's Balli, Brazena is going to be multi-passenger so you can move a lot of people at once, and Bitty is the cargo carrier. We named her Bitty because she's so itty bitty." Ben laughed. "Itty bitty, get it?"

Q'Jenn glanced at the huge lumbering box-like machine. "Alright, I get the joke." He cocked his head a moment. "Balli does seem to be very quiet."

"They all are. And they are all pretty simple to operate and we are working on making them even more efficient, safer and powerful." Ben pushed his chin out and put his hands on his hips. "I'm not going to go into the technical details like torque and why we don't need a clutch, but you know, you *should* care more about what I'm trying to do here."

"And why is that?"

"Because I am doing this for your damned - ," Ben caught whatever he had been about to say, then cleared his throat. "Progress is going to continue and there is nothing any of us can do to stop that. But we can do things to make sure that new things don't destroy the old – or at least that's what my mother claims the Jedeen believe. If you've been around any of those internal combustion machines, then you know they are noisy, smelly, inefficient, and the way they burn petroleum products lets off horrible by-products. If we can make better steam engines that can be used for different kinds of machines, they are quiet, clean and far less polluting. But we've got to keep working on them to make them better. And something that people will want to use."

Q'Jenn bowed to the force of Ben's passion. "I will concede that I agree with your thoughts on progress and your intentions for helping the forest by making a clean, quiet machine. I will still maintain, however, that whatever we do in the name of progress has to be done responsibly, and that includes not just the vehicles you are creating but all the related infrastructure changes such as roads and fuel sources."

"Of course, and that's why we're going for a ride. So let's get on with it."

"Certainly."

Ben made a last check of everything while Q'Jenn climbed into the front seat, folding his cloak across his lap and settling his sword carefully by his side. Ben flipped up the windshield and secured it, shrugged into a long leather coat, then went to the driver's position.

"You might want to keep your cloak handy." Ben handed Q'Jenn a pair of goggles, putting on his own pair. "It can be a bit breezy when we get going." He waggled his eyebrows. "If you're really nice, I might let you drive."

"That's quite alright. I'll navigate." Q'Jenn held up the annotated maps for the area they were to check out.

"Right." Ben grinned, waved jauntily to his trio of mechanics and set off.

They kept to a sedate pace as they proceeded from the lodge to the port and then onto the roadway south of the lake. There really wasn't any navigating needed, or even much of anything unusual to see until they got to the new portion of the roadway, so Q'Jenn alternated his attentions between watching Ben operate the transporter, his white silk scarf flapping occasionally in their breeze, and evaluating his feelings about the experience he was having. He did notice that Ben was gradually increasing their speed as they passed onto the new, smoother pavement. Since it was still reasonable and Ben seemed to be much happier than usual Q'Jenn didn't say anything and focused on watching the road ahead for potential obstacles.

As they traveled on, Q'Jenn noted the areas they would need to stop and more closely examine on their return trip. After the first six miles, there was growing evidence of wasteful and lazy work the further they went: excessive trees cut down, waste not cleared, small waterways filled in instead of bridged, route shortcuts that went through unauthorized areas, broken machinery left lying in the woods to rust.

"Beautiful day, isn’t it?" asked Ben after an hour and a half, finally breaking his silence except for occasional humming or whistling. "Balli's really purring along."

"It has been a comfortable ride and we've covered quite a bit of ground." Q'Jenn wanted to be fair in his evaluation, adding, "A horse would have to have kept to a hard trot or gallop to match our time - by my reckoning we've already come over twenty miles."

"She makes good time when you can find a decent road like this one, but even on dirt or gravel she can at least keep going for a long time as long as she has fuel and water." Ben glanced over at the map in Q'Jenn's lap. "Isn't there a long stretch of straight road coming up, several miles of it, if I remember correctly?"

"Yes, around that next curve about another half-mile or so it straightens out where it shouldn't have. They cut through some nesting areas that were supposed to be off limits. It's the sort of thing that F'Lor protested but Tol kept signing off on."

"I've been keeping her throttled down, but I'd like to show you what Balli can do." Ben patted the steering wheel tenderly. "She can move out right smartly, she can."

"Ben, a little faster is fine if you're careful, but you need to remember that there are animals in the forest who don't know what roads and machines mean. That's one of the biggest issues I've had with transporters, their drivers speeding or driving where they shouldn't, not the machines themselves."

"I'm an excellent driver," Ben huffed. He stared straight ahead at the road.

"I'm sure you are a very good driver," replied Q'Jenn. "I'm just reminding you of the potential hazards out here. The fact that this vehicle is running as quietly as it is could actually make it more dangerous than one of those noisy ones."

"I'll be careful."

Despite his misgivings, Q'Jenn said nothing further. After all, Ben hadn't done anything yet to deserve his mistrust, so he shrugged and focused harder on the way ahead.

They swept smoothly around the curve and Ben began slowly increasing their speed. His grin grew wider in proportion to their rate of travel; the trailing ends of his scarf began whipping behind him.

Q'Jenn's uneasiness also grew. He kept his silence for a few miles until Ben starting going even faster, the wind biting his face despite the warmth of the sunny day. He raised his voice to be heard, "Ben, we need to slow down."

"We're fine. She can go a *lot* faster than this." Ben let the throttle out a bit more.

"I don't care how fast it can go, slow down!" Q'Jenn felt a spike of warning from the Spirit and started to reach for Ben.

Too late. Ahead of them a flash of brown bounded from between the trees, stopped halfway across the road in panic.

The next few seconds were chaotic as Ben wrestled with brakes and steering, fighting to try to avoid the deer and yet keep from overturning. The vehicle slid and slithered, the brakes screaming. Q'Jenn clung to his seat to keep from being thrown out. There was a sickening crunch as the transporter collided with the still-frozen deer.

The hiss of the steam engine was the only sound disturbing the sudden heavy silence. Q'Jenn leaped from the car and ran to where the deer had landed several yards away. He knelt down and began examining the animal; it thrashed weakly under his hands and he knew with a sick dismay that the injuries were severe.

Q'Jenn looked up and saw that Ben was examining the transporter. Somehow he had managed to turn the vehicle so it skidded almost sideways into the deer; the front fender and driver's side frame looked damaged but the engine was still running. One part of Q'Jenn's mind admired the remarkable reflexes the maneuver must have required but mostly he was just angry.

"Ben! Get over here!"

Ben straightened and slowly walked over. His face was pale and his hands shook a little from shock, but he grew even whiter as he stared down at the deer. He licked his lips and whispered, "I'm sorry… I didn't see it in time." Ben's voice wavered a little as he asked, "Is it…"

"She's still alive, obviously, but badly injured," said Q'Jenn evenly. "Both front legs and some ribs are broken and judging by the bleeding from her nose and mouth she has internal injuries." He pulled out his clan knife.

"What are you going to do?"

"There is no way she is going to survive her injuries but she could linger for hours, however." Q'Jenn looked straight at Ben as he softly asked, "Do you want me to let her lie there in pain?"

"I… no, of course not." Ben looked away.

"Ben K'Ni, look at her." Q'Jenn waited until Ben had dragged his gaze to the animal's deep brown eyes. "If you ever wonder why I object to those damned infernal machines, you remember this and you remember what you are forcing me to have to do next. You can have all the progress you want, but by the Spirit I will keeping fighting to make sure it's done right. If you want to help, then find a way to avoid senseless killings like this."

"I'm sorry." Ben's voice choked and he fell silent.

Q'Jenn ignored Ben and set about his task. He took a few seconds to go into a light meditation, put one hand on the deer's head and sent soothing thoughts until she lay quietly. As he began murmuring a prayer to the Spirit asking for blessing and forgiveness for the wasted life, he glanced up and was surprised to see that Ben had knelt in the road, his head bowed. Clan knife in his right hand, Q'Jenn found the right spot just under the junction of head and neck with his left. With one swift merciful stroke he felt the deer's essence pass peacefully into the keeping of the Spirit.

Both men slowly got to their feet and stood silently for a moment.

"What do we do next?" asked Ben as he scrubbed at his face.

"Does that thing still work?" Q'Jenn's tone was curt.

"I need to knock the fender back away from the tire and check for any other damage, but I don't think there's any problem with the engine or drive train."

"Fine. First thing is to get the body off the road; the predators and carrion eaters will take care of the rest. Then I need to look for her fawn while you examine your vehicle."

"Fawn?"

"She was nursing, which you probably didn't notice. If we leave it out here it will either starve or the predators will get it. We're going to take it back with us; there's a wildlife care and rehab center at the Jedeen complex. They'll raise it and then return it to the wild when it's old enough." Q'Jenn raised an eyebrow. "Unless, of course, you want me to kill the fawn, too."

"No, I don't want that at all." Ben looked like he might throw up; he swallowed hard and his breathing was shallow.

"Then let's get to work." Q'Jenn gathered the body, turned on his heel and headed out into the forest.

It took Q'Jenn fifteen minutes to find the brown and white fawn where it lay hidden in tall grass. He carried it back to the vehicle and wrapped it in his cloak as Ben finished his final adjustments.

"That does it. It should run fine but I'll keep the speed down as a precaution." Ben wiped his hands on a rag. "We'll still be able to get back home in good time."

"We have work to do first."

"What do you mean?"

"I've quieted her - the fawn will be fine for several hours. Since that last burst of speed put us close to the end of the paved road, we're going to go ahead and finish our task. We'll proceed to the end as planned, then turn back and stop at each of the areas annotated on the map so you will have firsthand knowledge of the damage that will be the heart of the contract dispute tomorrow morning. That is what you promised the Duke you would do and responsibilities come before personal feelings."

Ben took a moment to digest that news and finally nodded.

"If we are ready to go, show me how the controls work and I'll operate the vehicle. You can hold the fawn and keep an eye on the map."

"Now wait a damned minute! You can't do that!"

"It's that or we walk."

Ben stared angrily at the Guardian, but it was abundantly obvious that there would be no shifting Q'Jenn. Finally, he blew a sharp breath out his nose and acquiesced.

The next five hours were silent except for the continuous hissing of the steam engine and the short exchanges as they halted at each point on the map. Q'Jenn would pull to a stop, they would get out as Ben carefully laid the swaddled fawn down, discuss the type of contract deficiency or problem they saw, Ben would dutifully take notes, then they'd return to the vehicle and drive on. It was dark by the time they dropped off the fawn at the Jedeen animal center and slowly made their way back to the garage behind the lodge; fortunately, the passenger-side headlight had not been broken in the accident. Ben's crew was waiting anxiously and they began going over the damage, despite Ben's admonishment to leave it until the morning.

Ben and Q'Jenn walked back to the lodge together and went to Ben's office.

"Do you have any questions for the meeting tomorrow?" asked Q'Jenn as Ben dropped into the chair behind his desk.

"No. I think I'll just take a quick look at the contract summary and then turn in. I suspect tomorrow's going to be a long day." Ben hesitated as Q'Jenn turned to leave. "Look, about this afternoon –" His words were interrupted by a knock on the connecting door. He got up to open it; the Duchess was on the other side.

"Are you alright, Ben?" Belessa asked. "You got back much later than we expected."

Q'Jenn kept his silence, but from the Duchess's expression he strongly suspected that she knew something had definitely gone wrong. She was still Jedeen at heart and likely had a strong connection to her only son.

Ben sighed and went to lean against his desk. "It took longer than planned to inspect all of the sites…" He glanced at Q'Jenn before continuing, staring down at the floor. "We had an accident on the way out." He raised a hand quickly. "We're both fine and the transporter still works… I, uh, was going too fast and I hit a deer."

"Did you kill it?" Belessa's expression was carefully neutral.

"It was still alive after I hit it but it was pretty badly injured." Ben bit his lower lip, but managed to raise his head. "I'm very sorry, Mother. It was my fault; Q'Jenn warned me about going too fast and I didn't listen."

The question did not need words as Belessa looked at Q'Jenn. "I passed her life-force to the Spirit. We recovered her fawn before continuing the task; it's at the animal center."

"Thank you, Q'Jenn. I know that is never an easy duty." She sighed. "If you could give us some time alone, please. I need to speak to my son."

"Of course, Your Grace," said Q'Jenn softly. "I will see you both in the morning." He bowed and left for his room.

*** ***

The next morning, Q'Jenn rose early and walked to the Jedeen complex. His first stop was at the animal care center, which was much further back in the woods from the main complex. The keepers showed him the fawn in its new temporary home and thanked him for recovering it; it was only a few weeks old and would certainly have perished if left on its own. He ran into S'Vano, D'Rala and a few other Guardians on his way back so he ate breakfast with them. S'Vano told him about their continuing progress with the criminal investigation; the financial people now felt they had definite proof of multiple cases of financial mismanagement involving both Givok and Narelli funds, but even more troubling were indications that Tol had invited criminals into Narelli who were interested in not just poaching but also mineral and gemstone deposits. The Narelli Guardian asked Q'Jenn to keep an eye out for anything unusual.

As they were leaving the dining room, D'Rala pulled her old friend into a side room and closed the door.

"Hey, you were awfully quiet this morning," said D'Rala. "I've known you a long time and there is definitely something off. You having problems with Ben K'Ni or is it something else?"

Q'Jenn sighed. He hadn't really wanted to talk about it, but he knew that D'Rala was not going to let it drop. "We've been making progress; Ben has come a long way in things like understanding the contract. Other areas, not so much. Yesterday we took one of his transporters out on the south leg of the new road so he could see for himself all the problems we're going to be talking about today." Q'Jenn rubbed his chin. "Those machines are really his passion. I give him credit for having good intentions about building machines that are better for the environment, although I think much of that is his mother's influence, but he doesn't always see beyond them. We were doing fine until we got to a long stretch of straight road and he had to go fast, very fast. We hit a deer and she was badly injured; I had to release her life to the Spirit."

"Oh, Q'Jenn." D'Rala gave her friend a long hug. "I'm so sorry. I know how you feel about that sort of thing."

"I don't think Ben has ever had to deal with anything like that. He did seem genuinely upset." Q'Jenn rested his head atop D'Rala's head. "There was a fawn, too. I made Ben sit in the passenger seat and hold the fawn while we finished the rest of the task, then we dropped it off at the animal center. I may have gone a bit overboard but I will admit to not feeling particularly charitable. We haven't talked since last night and we've got this damned road contract meeting today that is likely to be pretty nasty." He stepped back and shook his head. "I'm not looking forward to the rest of today."

"You did what you felt needed to be done. It was part of your responsibility and you absolutely will not apologize to K'Ni," said D'Rala fiercely. She punched his arm lightly. "Tell you what, I'm off tonight. What you need to take your mind off things is to get off your lazy arse and do some sparring. After dinner we can go out by the waterfall and I'll kick your butt with the practice swords."

Q'Jenn laughed, his spirits lifting for the moment. "You haven't beaten me in years but you're welcome to try. You're right, though, it will be a good change. We haven't done anything but basics on the few occasions Ben and I have been able to spar and I need the work."

"That sounds like a plan. We can eat here and then head out," said D'Rala.

"I'm looking forward to it. See you tonight." Q'Jenn bowed with a smile before departing for the lodge.

The meeting for the official road contract review was as long and unpleasant as Q'Jenn had feared. Ten representatives of the road company had made the long trek out to Narelli, including three lawyers. On the Duke's side, the audit team laid out the financial mismanagement issues, backed up by Inspector Wevn Thol's listing of the potential criminal charges involved. The engineers, led by Geba Placon for K'Vangil and Chief Engineer L'Trocovo for the support contract, provided detailed instances of contract violations and poor practices.

The road company team fought every charge and alleged contract violation. As expected, they tried to shift as much as possible of the financial and criminal charges to their missing president and his two companions. They also tried to shift blame to Tol K’Sov, producing invoices and work review approvals, most of which were refuted by the K'Vangil team.

Q'Jenn sat along a back wall to observe. He had timed his arrival so there was no time to talk to Ben before the meeting started. During the course of the meeting, he noted approvingly that Ben was diligent in absorbing what was happening and answered clearly and concisely on the two occasions he was requested to comment on the sloppy work and deviations he had personally observed. Q'Jenn was also interested in seeing Ben's reaction to how his father was running the meeting. This view of the Duke as a very hard-nosed but fair negotiator who never once let things get out of his control was one he didn't seem familiar with and several times Q'Jenn saw Ben nod or look particularly thoughtful.

Lunch was brought in and they continued working; it was late afternoon before a tentative settlement was reached. Both sides agreed that the most severe financial improprieties did involve Tol K’Sov and the missing company personnel, although Inspectior Thol reserved the right to bring criminal charges if warranted by additional evidence. The company admitted to most of the contract violations, agreed to the monetary penalties stipulated in the contract and agreed to participate in follow-on meetings with the Duke's team to determine appropriate remediation. There was still a great deal of money involved if they were allowed to complete the rest of the work, so in the end they seemed resigned to making the best of things.

Q'Jenn slipped out in the general milling about as the session broke up. He was feeling cooped up and needed badly to get out in the air and work off pent-up energy and feelings. Dinner at the Jedeen complex helped; the easy camaraderie of shared experiences and philosophies was a marked contrast to the hostility he had sat through all day. Afterwards, D'Rala brought a pair of wooden training swords, and they made their way along a winding and sometimes pathless route through the trees to a place many of the Guardians had adopted as a private training ground. A small waterfall made a pleasant musical background as it dropped into a clear pool, while a large clearing had long since been freed of rocks and other obstacles.

"Mmmmmm." Q'Jenn stood with eyes closed as he drew a deep breath. He held it for a while, then slowly let it out. "I've been needing this."

"All work and no play makes for a tired Jedeen," said D'Rala as she laid the swords down by the edge of the water. She added, "And one who's no fun to be around. Leave off the babysitting for tonight and prepare to be thumped."

Q'Jenn grinned. "Ever hopeful, aren't you, my dear?"

She stuck her tongue out at him as they both stripped down to boots, breeches and loose shirts; their regular weapons were carefully set aside. As they warmed up with a slow open-hand kata, the two Jedeen fell easily into the familiar routine and finished in perfect synchronization. Each picked up a wooden sword designed to emulate the length and weight of a Guardian's sword and moved to the center of the clearing.

The air rang with the clacking of wood, swishing of boots through short grass, breathing and occasional friendly taunts, grunts or reminders of form. A ten-minute formal exercise was followed by a fifteen-minute harder exercise as breathing grew faster.

"I definitely need to do this more often." Q'Jenn wiped his sleeve across his face. "Been sitting on my arse in too many of those flipping meetings these last few weeks. It's a good thing I'm hauling my boy out to the woods soon for more field experience."

"Excuses, excuses. I almost got you in that last one." D'Rala sucked in several breaths. "How about a free-form spar? I'll get you for sure this time."

"In your dreams." Q'Jenn gave an exuberant laugh that drifted across the water and into the forest. "You're on!"

They set to again, feinting, weaving, dodging, darting in and out, the pace increasing as their competitive spirits came to the fore. Blunt edges found openings but were blocked more often than not.

A blade to blade clinch was held as they strained. "You know we've got a visitor, right?" whispered D'Rala.

"It's Ben. Let him wait!" Q'Jenn whispered as he pushed off.

They circled warily for a few moments, gauging the moment to strike. With a sudden rush, they both moved, a seeming wild frenzy of blows, swords hissing as they blurred in a fierce dance that was still exquisitely controlled by the expert swordsmen. Finally, Q'Jenn's longer reach and faster reflexes allowed him to slip inside D'Rala's guard; her weapon went flying and she was swept to the ground.

They grinned at each other as Q'Jenn extended a hand to pull her up. "Let's give your boy a little show," D'Rala said wickedly. She reached up, pulled Q'Jenn's unresisting head down and held him in a long kiss while his arms went around her for a tight embrace.

As they broke apart, D'Rala tapped Q'Jenn on the chest. "And we need to do that more often, too. After all, Z'Borno won't be back from his new mission for at least a year, so both of our beds are getting cold."

"You are insatiable, my little minx." Q'Jenn pulled her back for another kiss. "Although Z'Borno does have some other attachments that I also find quite enjoyable."

D'Rala pulled back and playfully punched Q'Jenn's arm. "Now look who's talking!" She glanced at the treeline. "Well, we didn't scare him off. He must really want to see you about something." D'Rala used her outer shirt to wipe her face and put on the rest of her clothes. "I'll leave you two alone, shall I?"

"I'd better see what he wants," sighed Q'Jenn. "Leave the practice swords, I'll take them back." He called out, "Ben! We know you've been out there for at least fifteen minutes. Come on out!"

There was a crackling of undergrowth and Ben cautiously stuck his head out from behind a tree. "Um… are you sure I'm not interrupting?" he asked diffidently. "I can go away if you prefer."

"Please stay," said D'Rala. "I have to get back anyway." She buckled her heavy leather belt, adjusted the set of her sword. "Thanks, Q'Jenn. That was a good workout."

"Thank you, my dear. We definitely must do that again sometime."

D'Rala waved at both men and melted into the forest.

Ben looked at the wooden blades that Q'Jenn held in one hand. "Was that how fast you normally fight? When I was learning from C'Nal and W'Luva, I don't remember them ever being that fast."

"Actually, no. That was just a friendly practice since we didn't want to injure each other. With protective gear it's much faster."

"Oh. So you were serious when you said you were fast enough to deflect cross-bow bolts?"

"Of course. I generally find that telling the truth is the best course of action."

"So, truthfully, those couple of sparring sessions we did weren't serious?"

"I'm not entirely certain what you mean by 'serious'. I had no way to gauge your prior experience and current skill level, so what we did was very basic. Which is not to say that they weren't useful, mostly to show me that you haven't practiced extensively in a while." Q'Jenn tilted his head. "But that's surely not why you're here."

"Well, no, I have some other things I need to talk to you about." Ben got a very determined look on his face. "But since I'm here, I want to spar, too. For real, not baby stuff. I want to see what I can do."

Q'Jenn started to object, then just shrugged. "You understand the difference between a weapons kata and free-form?"

"Yes. It has been a while, but I learned open hand and sword individual and pairs katas."

"Alright." Q'Jenn looked up at the sky. "We've got about an hour of decent daylight left. I want to see you walk through the bending tree kata at half speed, then we'll try it at speed." He tossed one of the swords over. "Come out here and assume the starting position."

"Bending tree, right, I remember that, it was one of the first ones I learned." Ben hefted the sword. "This is lighter than the ones we were using."

"It was made to simulate a Guardian's sword." Q'Jenn moved to about ten feet to Ben's left side. "Begin when you are ready."

Ben shifted his feet and held the sword in both hands; he closed his eyes, took two slow breaths, moved into the first position. For ten minutes Q'Jenn guided Ben through the kata, calling out corrections, making him repeat movements until he completed the entire sequence properly.

"Not bad," allowed Q'Jenn. "Relax, breathe slowly. Let me know when you're ready to start the pairs. Don't worry about hurting me, but I make no promises that you won't end up with some bruises. We'll repeat the kata three times."

Ben's eyes flashed at the implied challenge, but he let the words slide off. He gathered himself for another minute, moved into the starting position and signaled that he was ready.

On the first round they went relatively slowly, Q'Jenn still calling out corrections. The second round was a little faster and the tone grew serious as both men concentrated on form. The third repetition was at the same speed until Ben tried to be more aggressive – that turned out to be a significant mistake. For the last thirty seconds Q'Jenn decimated Ben's defense, taking advantage of every error to deliver thumping blows, driving him across the clearing, then casually flicking Ben's sword away before sweeping him off his feet onto his face and adding a final flat blow across his rear.

Q'Jenn stood with his left boot on Ben's back as the young man squirmed to get free. "That was actually fairly good, Ben. You were doing rather well until you lost control and forgot to focus on the kata instead of trying to best me," he said in a conversational tone as if they were discussing the weather. "Oh, did you want to get up?" He pushed down a little harder. "You may ask and I shall consider your request."

"Let me up, dammit." Ben spit out a mouthful of dirt.

Q'Jenn leaned a little more weight onto his left foot.

Ben quieted. "May I get up, please?"

"Of course." Q'Jenn pulled Ben to his feet.

"Thank you for the lesson." Ben bowed formally, doing his best to retain some semblance of dignity while still sucking in air.

"You are welcome, sir." Q'Jenn bowed back. "You know, you really did do better than I was expecting. You have excellent reflexes and sound fundamentals. With the right training and practice, you could become an exceptional swordsman."

Ben blinked. "You mean that?"

"If you were willing to put in the time and effort, yes." Q'Jenn tossed his sword over near his discarded clothes. "But sparring is not why you came out here. Let's rest and talk."

They took a few minutes to clean up and have a drink at the pool, then found a spot that caught the last rays of sun.

"So?" Q'Jenn let the silence hang.

Ben sat playing with a loose blade of grass. "I wanted to talk to you about yesterday."

"Before you go any further, may I ask if you are speaking for yourself or for your parents?" Q'Jenn leaned back on one elbow, his head tilted.

"That's…" Ben's mouth thinned and his shoulders twitched. He took a deep breath before continuing. "I suppose that's a fair question. I'm here for me." He winced a little. "Father came into the office after you left. He wasn't happy about the accident and reminded me in no uncertain terms that if I'm going to be manager here I need to think about what sort of example I'm setting and what my actions mean to the people working here. Mother… well, she didn't really have much to say but the way she looked at me, and then she sighed… I felt about two inches tall." Ben shook his head. "But they didn't tell me anything specific to do, like apologize again, if that's what you're asking."

There was another silence before Ben continued. "I've been thinking a lot about yesterday and I'm apologizing on my own behalf. I really thought we were just out for a ride on the way out and it felt so good to get out, doing something I enjoy." Ben turned to look at Q'Jenn. "I don't know if you can understand, but I felt incredible when we got to that long stretch and I let Balli stretch her legs. It was almost like… like flying."

"Actually, I do understand. When I am one with the Spirit, whether it is meditation, sparring or whatever activity has brought me to that state, it does feel like a different state of being. But as much as I enjoy it, I cannot let it distract me from other needful things."

Ben looked at Q'Jenn, eyes slightly narrowed, as if he were trying to analyze his words. Finally he looked away. "I guess I must have gotten distracted then. I didn't want to hear what you were saying, or maybe I didn't want to believe that there was any danger." He swallowed. "I was wrong and I'm lucky it wasn't even worse - I could have gotten both of us killed. And I'm really sorry that you had to put that deer to sleep. That was something my mother did explain to me. And when I stopped to see if the fawn was alright tonight, the young lady on duty was polite but I felt like some ugly species of insect she wanted to squash."

"I appreciate the apology and that what happened out there seems to have made quite an impression on you. But was there something you are expecting to accomplish with this visit?"

"Yes." Ben turned to sit cross-legged facing Q'Jenn. "A while back you said you had done mediations related to expanding transportation and had developed some kind of rules that people agreed to for using transporters, right?"

"You have a good memory." Q'Jenn nodded approvingly. "Yes, I have helped several groups create 'rules of the road', so to speak."

"Good." Ben leaned forward a little. "I want to add that concept to the planning that is going on for future improvements. I don't know how things are going to work out in the rest of the world, and I don't know how we'll be able to enforce restrictions, but we do control Narelli and what goes on inside its borders. I'm going to push to include transportation rules or controls of some sort as part of management and planning. But I need your help to figure out what means. I was hoping you could get copies of those other agreements and be willing to help at some of the meetings to explain them."

Q'Jenn sat up, looking straight at Ben. "That is an excellent idea, Ben K'Ni." He held out his hand. "I would be happy to be of assistance."

"Thank you." Ben shook Q'Jenn's hand.

They gathered their things and began the walk back, chatting about Ben's idea. They were about halfway to the lodge, cutting through the woods and the light beginning to fade, when Q'Jenn had a stray thought.

"May I ask you a question, Ben? It's not about the machines or roads."

"Sure. What did you want to know?"

"There are very few people who know about that clearing by the waterfall. How did you find me?"

"I found Senior Guardian S'Vano at the support complex and he told me you and D'Rala had gone out to spar."

"Did he give you directions?" persisted Q'Jenn. "There are no paths for a good part of the way."

Ben was quiet as they continued to walk. He finally offered a vague wave, "No, he just said you went out into the forest."

"So how did you find me?"

Ben walked a little faster and mumbled something Q'Jenn couldn't hear.

"Is something wrong, Ben?"

Ben stopped short. "You know I love being an engineer, it's what I've always wanted to do. Part of that is because I can see things, dream things… I'm not sure how it always happens. But I can translate those images into machines or ways to do things with machines and it makes me happy." He took a deep breath. "From time to time I have other sorts of dreams and thoughts, seeing things that sometimes come to pass. And I can find things or people."

"That sounds like manifestations of a Spirit blessing. Your mother mentioned to me that you had dreams."

"Well, the Spirit or whatever can have those others back." Ben's tone was frustrated, his hands clenched. "I can't control them; most of the time I have no idea what they mean. Like finding people, for example, that only seems to work if I want it bad enough, but even then I can't figure out how to make it work every time. That's how I found you tonight – I'd been thinking about the accident all last night when I couldn't sleep and feeling worse and worse about what happened and I *had* to find you."

"There are ways –"

"No! I just want it to go away. And I don't want to talk about it." Ben started walking fast, almost trotting, his shoulders stiff.

Q'Jenn let him go, trailing behind just close enough to make sure Ben made it back to the lodge safely. The whole way his mind was divided between Ben's new request for help and this new information about a Spirit gift that didn't seem to be much of a blessing to its recipient.

*** ***

"Thank you, everybody. Any questions on taskings?" The Duchess waited a moment but there were no responses. "That finishes all the new business. A very good meeting and I'm pleased with all the fine work." She smiled. "Let's go out and do good things for Narelli." As people began standing up to depart, she gestured to F'Lor. "A moment, please."

Ben and Q'Jenn sat at the other end of the long table. As part of the division of labor, the Duchess was overseeing Narelli operations while the Duke was working mostly on transition issues. Today was another of her status meetings.

"I have a tasking for you, Ben," said Q'Jenn as they waited to chat with the Duchess. "You've been to quite a few meetings now. Part one - what do you see as the differences in the management style between the Duke and Duchess? Part two – what are you seeing as the management style you want to use when you take over?"

Ben wrinkled his nose. "You want me to try to think when I'm hungry?" His stomach grumbled as if in agreement, but it was clear that neither plea was going to move Q'Jenn. Ben sighed as he drummed his fingers on the table. "Well, there are similarities and differences." He stopped to chew on the corner of his bottom lip.

"That's a start, I suppose," replied Q'Jenn dryly.

Ben shot an annoyed glance at his mentor, then sat up straight in his chair. "They are both organized, insist on agendas and every official meeting has somebody designated to take notes. They both run what I would call a 'civilized' meeting, meaning they expect people to be on time, treat each other with reasonable respect, no ranting or screaming matches allowed and they don't react well to justifications of 'just because'. Neither of them suffers fools gladly. One thing I really like about both of them is that they seem to have an attitude of 'let's figure out the problem and fix it' instead of 'find someone to blame'. And I like that they both have principles they won't violate, like honesty and taking responsibility."

"That's good as far as it goes."

"Um… they both have power and status because of their rank, but I think they use it differently. They both treat people fairly, but I think the Duke's style can be a little more blunt, not quite as patient and he's got a much harder edge at times, like that road contract mess. That's a side of him I never really saw before; I think it's a difference between the person I know as 'my father' and the one who is the 'the Duke'. I think his vision of the 'big picture' goes further, broader, maybe because he typically deals with issues at a higher level?"

Q'Jenn just raised one eyebrow.

Ben sucked on one tooth for a moment. "Alright, the Duchess has a different approach. She's just as organized and probably even better at keeping track of who's supposed to be doing what, but comes across with a softer edge. I don't think I've ever heard her raise her voice, but she has a devastating way of quietly letting you know when she's disappointed in something you did, like it was her fault that you screwed up. I'm not sure I agree with how much latitude she appears to have handed over to F'Lor and his people; it seems to me that she's letting them run everything when she's the one who's supposed to be in charge." He frowned in thought.

"It can be a fine line between leading and managing, understanding what information you need to have and when you are wasting time and energy digging into irrelevant issues, or between setting policy and 'running things'," said Q'Jenn. "What sort of results is she getting with that style? Are people doing things they shouldn't?"

"Things look like they're running smoothly. People are willing to bring up problems and help each other and I haven't heard of any problems with anyone 'running amok'." Ben thought a bit more. "It's funny, but I keep getting the impression that people *want* to do things for her, even the ones who don't have any direct contact with her."

"Could that be because she assumes people are capable until proven otherwise and lets them do their jobs without micromanaging?" Q'Jenn leaned back in his chair. "Or perhaps she feels that all work has value and all contributions are worthy of respect, whether it's the housemaid cleaning toilets in the lodge, the wildlife manager hiking in the rain for three days to get a census of a protected species, or even, Spirit help us, an engineer doodling a new design for a better flue to improve the air flow in the kitchen?"

"Are you making fun of me? I was just trying to make a suggestion last night when –"

"No, dear, he's not making fun of you at all." Belessa had quietly wheeled up behind her son. "He's simply making a point."

Ben turned in his chair to face his mother. "I thought it would make things a little cooler in there. I was going to ask Geba if any of her people had time to take a look at it."

"Oh, son. What would Chief Engineer L'Trecovo think if you did that?" Belessa took Ben's hand in hers. "I'm sure his feelings would be hurt. Just as Geba would feel disrespected if you asked L'Trecovo to have his people update the plan for implementing those portable coders that her people built."

"But…" Ben's mouth hung partially open for a moment before he continued slowly. "They all work for us. If I have an engineering problem, I just go find an engineer or tech to get help and they've never cared who's who. Why is it different for everybody else?"

"Even engineers are people, son, if you ask the right questions. Most people want to have pride in their work and to know that you respect them for what they are doing, but they can also be territorial. That's just human nature. Sometimes it's not convenient to wait for the right person to do a job or perhaps there's an emergency where something needs to get fixed right then, but you will usually get better long-term results if you give people clear responsibilities, hold them accountable for the results and then let them do their jobs within the policies and boundaries that you have set and which you check on. As the Narelli manager, they will all look to you to set the tone with policies and goals, but they will also see how you treat people and how much trust you display. Don't play favorites, don't let injustices slide by, make decisions without dithering about, get out and talk to people and remember to say thank you often, even for little things."

"Oh." Ben took a slow breath. "I guess I need to think about all that for a while."

"That's alright, son." Belessa patted his hand. "You have it in you to be a good leader, but it helps to have good 'management techniques'. If you have any questions, I or Mallen or Q'Jenn will be happy to talk to you. Now then, tell me about this trip to Mount Selebo the two of you are taking."

*** ***

The dim light under the dense forest cover changed to brilliant noon sunlight as thinner trees gave way to a grassy clearing. Across the way a stream glinted and gurgled.

Q'Jenn held up a hand as he halted Montel. "We'll take a break here," he called. He dismounted and led the brown horse to where his two companions had stopped.

For the last two and a half days their little expedition had wound its way up toward the top of Mount Selebo, the highest reasonably accessible point in northeast Narelli. There were even higher peaks along the northern border, but climbing gear was needed to ascend all the way to their rocky tops; Selebo was a highly satisfactory alternative for Q'Jenn's purpose. To save time they had left from the port on a steam-driven flatboat, sailing along the lake and up a river that took them close to the base of the mountain. From that point they rode upward, quartering across increasingly rough terrain, the horses scrambling through brambles and gullies, moving ever higher.

"What do you think of rough country riding now, Ben?" asked Q'Jenn. "Although this isn't nearly as bad as other places I've had to go."

"I think I've got bruises on bruises," groused Ben. "Where'd you get this nag, anyway? I swear he found every pothole and overhanging branch there was to find." He slid off with a groan and stood, trying to stretch out kinks in his legs and back.

Q'Jenn shared a grin with Junior Guardian V'Tova. The petite brunette was along partly for security but primarily to guard the horses while Q'Jenn and Ben climbed the rest of the way on foot.

"You should be glad we came up the easy side. The west face is much worse," replied Q'Jenn. "And Rogney is a highly trained and experienced mount, well suited to this type of trip." He rubbed the white blaze on the nose of the sturdy jet black horse.

"Yeah, trained to jolt every bone in my body." Ben twisted around a few more times before adding hopefully. "Is this where we're stopping for lunch?"

"This is where we'll be leaving the horses with V'Tova, so we can have lunch before we start walking. Let's get the animals taken care of first."

They found a good spot with water and grass, then pulled off the tack, brushed down each horse and let them loose on long tether lines.

Q'Jenn smiled as Montel promptly found a sandy spot along the stream and grunted happily as he rolled onto his back and twisted around several times, legs flailing, then stood up and shook himself. So much for brushing him, he thought to himself as Montel snickered at him before searching out the tastiest patch of grass.

"Always has to have the last word, doesn't he?" asked V'Tova.

"He's a character, that one," agreed Q'Jenn. "But there's not another I'd rather have on the trail."

"Hey, I'm having lunch. You two can admire the damned horses or get over here before I eat it all."

Q'Jenn and V'Tova shared another small grin before heading over to join their reluctant companion.

A half hour later Q'Jenn and Ben were on their way, small overnight packs on their backs. Four hours of steady hiking through increasingly steep and rough ground brought them close to the upper treeline before Q'Jenn called another halt.

"We'll camp here tonight. I want to stay in the trees and there's a nice little spring where we can get water and wash up. It's pretty cold, though, so don't try to drink too much at once."

Ben dropped his pack by a ring of blackened stones. "You've been here before?"

"Aye, we send patrols up here occasionally, partly for observation and partly for training new people. I'll get some dry wood if you want to fill the water containers."

They ate early, as Q'Jenn intended to have them at the top of the mountain before daybreak. After the simple meal, there was still daylight in the small clearing.

"How are you feeling?" asked Q'Jenn as he neatly stacked extra firewood several feet away from the fire ring.

"Kind of sore and stiff." Ben rotated a shoulder. "Been a while since I've spent that much time on a horse and on my feet."

"I've got some liniment you can use before you go to sleep. Would you like to spar a little? It will help you loosen up."

"I suppose you expected this?" Ben was already getting to his feet.

"We've been on an easy stroll in the woods." Q'Jenn smiled as he unwrapped two wooden blades that had been enclosed in his cloak. "You should see what we do to apprentices and candidates."

"No, thanks." Ben pretended to shudder as he caught the sword tossed to him. He smiled as he took a practice swing. "The light blades! I like this; it seems to fit my hand better."

"You can carry them back down the mountain." Q'Jenn led the way to the center of the clearing. "Do you know the summer rose kata?"

"I don't think so."

"It's very basic but has a nice easy flow. I'll show you and we can do it slowly to let you get stretched out."

For almost forty minutes they slowly went through the steps, individually and then together. Q'Jenn rewarded Ben by allowing a short session of free-form sparring, calling a halt as the sun began dipping below the trees.

"That was great! Thanks." After washing up, Ben had stripped off his shirt and lowered his breeches. He poured a generous handful of liniment and began rubbing it in.

"It was a nice way to end the day," allowed Q'Jenn. He added wood to the fire, then laid out his blanket roll. "We should get some sleep; it's going to be an early rising."

"Right." Ben pulled his clothes back on, adding a cloak against the evening chill. He put his own blankets out near the fire, then handed back the flask of liniment. Ben hesitated, then stood staring down at an object on the ground.

"Something wrong?" Q'Jenn was sitting on his blanket roll, taking his boots off.

"I was wondering… could I hold your sword, please?"

Q'Jenn was surprised by the request; Ben had not shown any such interest before this. "Do you understand what a Guardian's sword means?" he asked softly.

"That you are a trusted officer of the government." Ben looked up. "That you have put in a lot of work to earn that position."

Q'Jenn hesitated. The sword was very special, almost a sacred item, but in the end it was still just a tool. Ben had made some missteps, but on the whole he had worked very hard in a difficult situation. Finally, Q'Jenn nodded and handed up the sword, still in its scabbard.

"Thank you," said Ben solemnly. He carefully carried it to his bedroll and sat cross-legged.

Very slowly Ben pulled the sword out. He lifted it cautiously around his head, brought it down, balanced it on one finger. His expression grew more and more entranced, his mouth half open. Ben let his fingertips rest on the point; gently, respectfully, holding his breath, he ghosted his fingertips along the entire length of the blade.

"Incredible," Ben breathed out. He shook his head as he stared at the sword. "I didn't think you could make metal like this."

"It is a very old Jedeen secret. Our smiths make these swords only for Guardians." Q'Jenn felt a sudden stirring of the Spirit, but it was not inside himself.

Ben's eyes closed as he seemed to withdraw for a moment. One hand tightened around the blade, stopping just short of cutting his palm on the razor-sharp edge. He was motionless for a long moment until, with a sudden gasp, his eyes flew open. "Ohhhhh…." he breathed out. "It would be perfect… so perfect." Ben looked down at the sword, then at Q'Jenn. "Do you know the things we could do with this kind of metal? The improvements I could make? It would be incredible. What else do the Jedeen do with this?"

"Nothing. There is a different metal they use for clan knives but as far as I know they don't use that for anything else either." Q'Jenn got up, put the sword back in its scabbard and carried it back to his bedroll. The irritation in his voice must have been very clear; Ben did not make any attempt to keep the sword.

"But how can the Jedeen keep such a thing a secret? Think of all the good they could do to make safer, more efficient machines." Ben sat up on his knees. "They could make a lot of money if that's important to them."

"There is no amount of money that is more important than our heritage, our identity," snapped Q'Jenn. "That's the kind of thinking that turned Xantos – " He closed his mouth, took a deep breath through his nose. "There's nothing to discuss. Let's go to sleep."

"Q'Jenn? I meant no disrespect. But that sword moved me and I can see where the secrets of its forging could help do so many good things. I didn’t mean to imply that making money was part of *my* vision."

"I believe that the Spirit sent you some sort of message; I felt its passing. But the Jedeen smiths control the metal's secrets, and I know they care far more for their craft than for money."

"I understand and respect that." Ben hesitated. "I've also heard there are Jedeen who do give in to that sort of temptation. If you don't want to talk about it, just tell me. My mother told me that Xantos Krion was such a person, but she also said that her knowledge was second-hand. Tol K’Sov told me that he personally spoke to Xantos and that the Jedeen treated him badly. I have come to understand that Tol is probably not a very good source, but I'm still confused about the truth of the matter. Can you tell me what really happened? Please?"

Q'Jenn sat down on his bedroll, laid the sword by his side. He considered the request as full darkness fell, leaving them in a small circle of light from the crackling fire. "It's not a complicated story. The Jedeen have a long history of taking in children, and even adults, who have Spirit gifts but need or wish to have training. Xantos Krion was one such. His family was wealthy from mining and metalworking, but his parents could not deal with his Spirit gifts, so they sent him to the Jedeen." Q'Jenn looked down and sighed. "Xantos had a very strong Spirit gift and thrived in the Jedeen clan, growing into a beautiful young man, charming, intelligent, strong, and an excellent swordsman. He took the clan oath at eighteen and was allowed to start Guardian training. When he was twenty, I was assigned as his trainer for a while. Things went well initially, until I began taking him with me on several of my missions. Apparently, the more he saw of the outside world, the more he disliked the relative austerity of Jedeen life."

Q'Jenn stood up, paced around the fire twice, then stopped by Ben.

"I fault myself for not seeing it sooner. One of my missions was near his family's home, so I let Xantos visit. I think it fueled his desire for riches, for when we returned to the clan holding, he befriended a young smith who was apprenticing to learn sword-making and had access to the secret metals. One night I had a warning from the Spirit so I wandered the main compound until the Spirit nudged me toward the smith's workshops. I found that the door was broken open, the young smith was dead and an ingot of the metal was missing. At first light, we found that Xantos was also missing."

Q'Jenn walked over to his bedroll and sat down heavily.

"I led the search party that tracked him down. We found him near a river with a gang of thieves. We had to kill most of them. I fought Xantos; although I wounded him, he jumped into the river and escaped. The Jedeen Council revoked Xantos's clan oath, reported him to the police as a murderer and a thief. I don't know where he is today, although his name occasionally still surfaces on police reports on the other continents."

Q'Jenn looked at Ben. "The Jedeen took in Xantos Krion, nurtured him, trained him, allowed him to become one of their own; Xantos repaid our trust with murder and thievery. Whatever Tol K’Sov may have told you, that is the truth as I know it. Take it for what you will."

"I have to say that is certainly a very different picture of the Jedeen from the one that Tol painted for me," said Ben thoughtfully. He blew out a slow breath. "Thank you, Q'Jenn; I know that probably wasn't an easy thing to have to deal with. I need to think about what you've said, but now I'm beginning to believe that I can trust little of what Tol told me about the Jedeen, or anything else, for that matter. That is hard for me; all of the Duke's other children always treated me decently, but Tol was the only one who went out of his way to be nice to me, treated me like I was somebody important instead of the baby of the family." Ben pulled off his boots. "I think it really is time to get sleep. Good night." He set his boots aside and crawled into his bedroll, soft even breathing quickly coming from his bundled shape.

Q'Jenn could not sleep so easily. The conversation had dredged up memories he didn't like to remember and a light meditation did not fully restore his equanimity. The name of Xantos lingered in the back of his mind, making the rest of their trip somewhat anti-climactic. He took Ben to the top of the mountain the next morning, where the young man was suitably impressed by the vast expanse of the Narelli and proved that he had done his homework by being able to match various landmarks on his map to what he could see. Almost absently Q'Jenn noted some odd wisps of smoke that were not where smoke should be and he marked them on a map to show to S'Vano later. Even the trip back down the mountain became mostly a tedious exercise and he did not get his usual joy from being out in the forest. After they finally arrived back at the lodge, he made time to go out to a solitary spot for a deep meditation to clear his mind and tamp down the memories of Xantos Krion back into the dark well where they belonged.

*** ***

"I swear I do not understand what people see in fishing." Ben scratched at an insect bite near his ear as he and Q'Jenn walked toward his project building. "Getting up at that obscenely early hour to go out in little boats in the cold and dark to put bits of dead fish on a hook and throw it in the water trying to catch another fish." He sniffed his fingers. "Gagh. I washed my hands four times and they still smell like that nasty damned bait. And I didn't think it was possible, but it was even more boring than all those damned meetings we've sat through for the last month. I've decided that if I want to eat fish, I will happily pay somebody else to catch them."

"The guests enjoyed you coming out with them." Q'Jenn tried to keep his smile from becoming too obvious. "And the staff greatly appreciated the fact that you were willing to fully participate and chat up the guests, too. I thought it was a rather useful and relaxing morning."

"I'll just bet you did," groused Ben. "I think you were sleeping most of the time. I'm sure I heard snoring coming from your end of that stupid boat."

"I'll admit to a catnap or two if that makes you feel better."

"Hah! I knew it. I thought you were supposed to be protecting me…" grumble mumble… "sleeping on the job."

"I have excellent reflexes and situational awareness. If you had fallen overboard I would have awakened instantly and directed one of the staff to rescue you." Q'Jenn couldn't help laughing at the outraged look Ben shot at him. "Anyway, look at the big picture – it's one more item you can check off the list of things your parents want you to do. And now that you've been out, you know that it's an activity you'll probably want to put on your list of things to do only when you need to humor an important guest."

"Hmmphh."

The closer they got to the building, however, the more Ben's mood lightened. By the time they went through the broad open doors there was actually a smile on his face.

Inside Trov, Trent and P'Dorno were gathered around a two-wheeler; standing next to it was a three-wheeled bicycle with a big basket between the two rear wheels. Trena and N'Geroso were sitting on the open back deck of Brazena, which had also acquired the nickname of 'peoplemover' as discussions had evolved of lengthening the chassis and deck to add even more benches.

"Hello," Ben called, "what do we have going on today?"

"Come look at this, sir," replied Trov. "P'Dorno and N'Geroso brought a couple of new wheelies they've been working on. That three-wheeler looks like it would be useful for local stuff, but this one's a pretty tough customer."

"I call it a mountain runner, sir," said P'Dorno as Ben moved closer to examine the machine. "We've got two-wheelers for general use and we're developing a lightweight one for the new roads, but I wanted something with a rugged structure, heavy enough to hold up to uneven ground but light enough to ride decently and carry if you had to, like crossing deep water. We're still having problems with some things like sorting out the gearing, though."

"Looks like the suspension needs some work, too." Ben poked at various parts. "Think it could replace a horse?" He gave a sly look over his shoulder at Q'Jenn, who just shook his head.

P'Dorno seemed very aware of the tall Guardian standing behind him, and framed his words carefully. "It would be simply another option, sir. If we can perfect it, I believe this could become a potential alternative for recreational users initially. All of the models we're working on right now are intended for possible use here in Narelli, either for support staff or guests."

"We brought you something actually useful, too." N'Geroso had wandered over, trailed closely by Trena. He reached into the basket on the three-wheeler and pulled out a bag to show it off briefly. "Cargo of fresh fruit came in this morning and I just happen to know a certain somebody in shipping. Best of the best for our friends."

"These machines will be very useful," protested P'Dorno. "They are highly efficient and there is a high return on the energy invested to propel them."

"P'Dorno is all about efficiency," whispered N'Geroso in a very audible aside to Trena. He winked as he selected a round reddish fruit from the bag, pulled his clan knife from his belt, sliced off a wedge and offered it to Trena with a flourish.

Q'Jenn was watching the byplay when he noticed that Ben had straightened up when he saw N'Geroso's knife. He had a look that Q'Jenn had come to recognize – Ben had latched on to some new or previously unnoticed piece of information and had questions he intended to pursue. Q'Jenn unobtrusively drifted closer as Ben deftly detached the engineer from Trena and walked him over so they could both lean on Brazena.

"Do you mind if I ask you a few questions?" asked Ben casually.

"Of course not, sir. What mystery of the world can I enlighten you on?"

"Nothing of that magnitude, at least not today." Ben smiled. "You're an engineer. Is that what you always wanted to be?"

"Ever since I can remember. I used to build models out of twigs and mud. Drove my mother nuts when I got older and kept taking things apart so I could rebuild them better."

Ben smiled as if having similar memories. "You carry the Jedeen clan knife, so I know you took the clan oath. Do you ever feel any conflict between what you want to do as an engineer and being a Jedeen?"

"No sir, not at all. In fact, I believe being a Jedeen makes me a better engineer."

"I don't understand. What does that mean?"

"I don't have as strong a Spirit gift as a lot of the others, but as a Jedeen I got training and education to make the best use of what I do have. The Jedeen philosophy gives me a focus in wanting to make the world a better place and the clan is my family; being a Jedeen is to be part of something much larger and better than anything I could do as an individual." N'Geroso grinned. "It's a fantastic life, too. I don't have to worry about making a living somewhere else and I'm happy doing whatever they need me to do."

"Even boring stuff? What if they wanted you to go scrub floors in the kitchen, for example?"

"I suppose I wouldn't be particularly thrilled about that, but I've done my fair share of 'floor scrubbing' if that's what was needed. It's just what you do." N'Geroso shrugged. "We each contribute value according to our abilities and the needs of the community. I've always had plenty of opportunities to do interesting engineering work because I'm willing to do whatever's needed; sometimes something that starts out looking dull and mundane can turn into something exciting if you go at it with the right attitude." He waved an arm and grinned. "And this place… wow, Narelli is just a great place to be."

Ben was digesting N'Geroso's words, his lips pursed. "Do all the Jedeen like working here?"

"Hey, all due respect, sir, but if you need to ask that question, then you need to get out more. I can't speak for everybody, like apprentices on rotational duties, but people who want to be away from cities fight to get assigned to Narelli because they love it here so much. Even the Jedeen doing basic work, like cooks and cleaners, like it here because it's a nice place and you're part of the family. Non-Jedeen seem to like it here, too; I've heard there's always a waiting list for vacancies." N'Geroso grinned. "No, sir, I've got the Spirit to guide me and all kinds of great toys to play with – what more could I want?"

"Okay, I get your point, I guess." Ben was smiling but his eyes were thoughtful. "Oh, something I probably should have asked a long time ago but didn't realize it. I really appreciate all the help you and P'Dorno have given us and my team likes working with you, but should I have asked your chief engineer, L'Trecovo, first? That day I initially met you at the support complex, I just sort of took it for granted that engineers dealt directly with engineers."

"Well… if you need something new, like a big project or a specific task, in the future it would probably be nice if you asked L'Trecovo, or you can just give F'Lor or L'Trecovo the mission and they'll figure out how to get it done. If you want something or somebody specific they don't really mind that as long as you let them know since they're responsible for resources."

"So I guess I screwed up when we first met. I suppose I should apologize to both of them." Ben sighed at this confirmation of what his parents and Q'Jenn had tried to tell him.

"No, sir, don't worry about that. When you originally got here, the word went to everybody to keep an eye out and help you. It was my responsibility to let my boss know that I had offered to show Trov around and get him access to whatever he needed to do your work. Your team is part of your family and it's our job to support you, so P'Dorno and I have been doing that; in return we've gotten some help on our other projects. The end result is that all of us, you, your team, everybody on the support contract, we're all here to serve Narelli." N'Geroso leaned forward confidentially, a mischievous grin on his lips. "Besides, sir, I had a couple of ulterior motives. One, if you're gonna be the next trustee manager, I wanted to be on your good side in case you get any new toys to play with. And two, you had Senior Guardian Q'Jenn squiring you around and I didn't want to do anything that might make him want to slice me into little bits with that wicked fast sword of his."

Ben laughed and slapped N'Geroso on the shoulder. "He probably would have, too. Thanks for talking to me." He stood up and grinned. "Now let's go do some engineering stuff!"

Q'Jenn smiled quietly as he slipped away.

*** ***

The big conference room was still empty when Q'Jenn entered. He began unrolling a large map which showed an enlarged portion of an area north of the lake; he laid it down flat on one end of the polished table and set paperweights along the edges. Sunlight slanted in through the wide windows, occasional dust motes sparkling in the beams.

"Service, Q'Jenn."

"Service, S'Vano." Q'Jenn went around the table to greet his fellow Guardian and his companion, the head of the Duke's security team, Lang Gac. "Good afternoon, Lang."

Several other people quickly followed, mostly security personnel, V'Woklo from the port, F'Lor, the Duke and Duchess. Everyone was settling at the table around the map when Ben came in.

"Hah!" Ben had a smug grin. "I found out the big secret."

"And which secret is that, dear?" asked the Duchess.

"Station Nine! The map just shows trees and a squiggly blue water source and I knew none of the Guardians or F'Lor's staff would reveal the secret – they're all too damned well trained. So I thought about who needed to know what was there but probably didn't get the word that it was supposed to be a surprise for me." Ben sat down at the conference table, clearly pleased with himself.

"And?" The Duke looked amused.

"I went down to the port and chatted up people until I found the woman who puts together the weekly supply packages for all the outlying stations, including the team that's working on Nine." He paused for dramatic effect before triumphantly announcing, "There's a mineral hot spring!"

"Congratulations, Ben." The Duchess seemed pleased with his initiative, not minding that it would spoil the surprise. "It's a great example of how big Narelli is and how much there still is out there that we don't know about. One of the security patrols found it several years ago and we've been carefully working on the development. It's quite a large spring with surprisingly high volume and I've wanted to visit it for some time."

"We think it will eventually become quite popular," said F'Lor. "So far we've put up six buildings; for one of them we diverted part of the flow and created a large indoor pool and some smaller, more private pools. The healers who have been there were all quite enthusiastic about the potential therapeutic value, but I just enjoyed being able to sit in that delightful water on the few occasions I've been able to visit. Access is still a bit of a challenge because of the location back in the hills; we've got a lot of work yet to create proper roads."

"That's what we're here to discuss, the trips planned for the Duchess and for Ben," said the Duke.

"We've chosen Senior Guardian M'Gorurk as the trip leader for the Duchess." S'Vano handed sheets of paper to the Duke, Duchess, Ben and F'Lor. "That is the list of team members. There are two of Lang's people and three more of my people for security, two of F'Lor's people to handle supplies and baggage, and two of the Duchess's personal staff to handle her accommodations. The first part of the trip will be simple." S'Van leaned over the map and began tracing a route. "We'll be using a shallow draft flatboat with a steam engine, backup sail and backup poles and oars. From the port they'll go across to the north side of the lake, then up the Gathow River to the landing."

"We make that run every week with supplies," interjected V'Woklo. "The river landing is rock-solid; we built it with the anticipation that it will need to handle heavy traffic. I chose very experienced operators and they've gone over their boat with a fine-tooth comb to ensure it's ready. There was some concern about the heavy rains that came through a few days ago, but we sent people up the river yesterday - the water levels in the river are still higher than normal, but we expect them to continue to go down and be at safe levels by the time the Duchess is scheduled to depart."

"Thank you, V'Woklo." S'Vano tapped on the map. "There will be a team from Station Nine waiting at the landing with horses for the supplies. The roads are still mostly dirt, only the first mile has been improved with packed earth and gravel, but narrow two-wheel carts with broad wheels are used routinely for transporting supplies. Normally the Duchess uses a small coach to get to the other outstations, but for additional safety this time our engineers and woodworkers have modified one of the supply carts to carry her. Lodging at the station has already been set aside for the entire party."

F'Lor handed pictures to the Duke and Duchess. "It doesn't look terribly elegant, I'm afraid, but it's very solid and has been tested twice on the full trip from the landing to the station. The design does very well even on muddy roads and forest paths; you may wish to consider using it for increased access to other parts of Narelli."

"I like this," said the Duchess as she studied the pictures. "And I like your suggestion about using it to visit other parts of the forest. We could use that not just for me but for some of our visitors who might need help." She passed her copies to Ben.

"Yes, Your Grace, that was something we were considering."

"As for our trip, it should be quite straight-forward." Q'Jenn stood next to S'Vano. "We will be using one of the transporters to travel down the leg of the road on the north side of the lake until we reach the end of the construction. We'll leave the transporter there and hike cross-country through here," his finger traced a route, "for three days until we get to Station Nine. We'll be staying on the same side of the river as the station so we won't need to worry about crossing it. This outbound trip will give us an opportunity to go through areas that are being considered for new camping sites and roads; we'll be keeping to an easy pace to give us time to look around. After our stay at Station Nine, we'll come back down the river on the boats, get off near the construction end point and use the transporter to return. That will give us two opportunities to see how the road construction cleanup is going."

"This is the schedule for both trips." S'Vano provided more sheets of paper. "Ben K'Ni and Q'Jenn are leaving early in the morning. Three days from now the Duchess will be departing very early in the morning and should arrive at Station Nine by late that evening. Both groups will meet at the station that night, spend two days together, then depart the third morning. Everyone will be back that third day."

The Duke and Duchess scrutinized the schedule, the list of personnel and looked back at the map. "What's the status on security risks?" asked the Duke.

"We've had no problems or indications on any of the road construction areas or along most of the lake-front. The sector that Ben K'Ni and Q'Jenn will be traveling through is patrolled regularly and there have been no significant issues reported in the last six months; we don't expect any problems but I am confident that if anything does come up, Q'Jenn will be able to handle it." S'Vano glanced at Q'Jenn, who nodded in agreement. He continued, "On the lake and Gathow River the only potential problems should be normal ones relative to weather and water conditions. On the land portion of the trip, there is some concern because there are large portions of that area that have not been well-explored and we've had a few odd indicators of unusual traffic, such as visible smoke where there were no registered visiting groups. We ran extra patrols but found nothing beyond an abandoned campsite. I've taken the precaution of ordering a team to sweep through that area before the Duchess's trip."

"I am quite satisfied with all of the preparations and precautions and am very much looking forward to this trip," declared the Duchess. "Please pass along my thanks to all of your people for all the work they've done to make this possible."

Ben looked dubious, but seemed resigned to the inevitable, as did the Duke; neither of them was willing to say anything to counter the Duchess's obvious delight and anticipation. They looked at each other, shrugged, and added their thanks to the team.

*** ****

It was a pleasant ride as Balli rolled along the roadway north of the lake. Ben kept the speed moderate while Q'Jenn kept a lookout for animals. They stopped at one point to talk to the crew the road contractor had put out to work off deficiencies on the new road and were satisfied that they had a good understanding of the quality of work that was expected. They pushed on through the morning with just a few brief stops for inspections until they reached the end of the paved portion. While they were there, they talked to the crew, F'Lor's engineer who was monitoring the work and the Guardian team that regularly patrolled the area.

While they ate lunch, they went over their maps again with the Guardian team, verifying the route they intended to take to get to Station Nine, their planned schedule and the return route. They found a flat clearing off the road and secured Balli, closing down her boiler, ensuring everything was off and tying a tarp over her. Although they weren't expecting any significant risks in the area they were traveling, there had been those reports of odd activity on the other side of Station Nine, so Q'Jenn decided to err on the side of caution. He attached his bow to one side of his pack, its string loose but easily accessible; the quiver of arrows went on the other side. His sword and a long field knife were on his belt and his clan knife in one boot; Ben had a long field knife on his belt and a small folding knife in his pocket. One last check of both packs, then the two men set off into the forest.

It was a pleasant day and they kept to a moderate pace that allowed them to talk easily. Q'Jenn would occasionally point out areas that might be of interest to guests, such as the meadows of wild flowers and spring nesting grounds for several varieties of colorful birds. Ben opined as to the ease or difficulty of putting in roads versus simple footpaths, while Q'Jenn countered with considerations of minimizing destruction of habitat. They spent an hour discussing the potential for using P'Dorno's beloved wheelies for getting through the forest. Eventually, they stopped for the night by a small stream and had a simple meal. Q'Jenn had not brought the practice swords but they did some simple open-hand katas and turned in early.

Q'Jenn woke to the light of a waxing gibbous moon. He lay motionless, casting his senses outward to try to determine what had disturbed his sleep. There seemed to be no immediate danger but he noticed that Ben's bedroll was empty. Q'Jenn slipped out of his blankets, took his sword in hand and silently moved from tree to tree, looking for his companion. He quickly found him; Ben had moved upstream and was standing by the edge of the water, tossing small stones into it.

"Ben? Is anything wrong?" Q'Jenn stepped from the cover of a large tree as he called out.

Ben started, swung around. "Sorry. Did I wake you?"

"No, not at all." Q'Jenn looked around, saw nothing amiss and lowered his sword to his side. "Is there anything wrong?" he repeated.

Ben turned back to watch the water, tossing a few more pebbles. Finally, he shrugged. "Just an odd sort of dream I had. I don't even remember what it was, but it just felt a little… disturbing, I suppose would be the right word."

Q'Jenn again casted for danger, but still felt nothing. "I don't sense anything. We should get back to sleep; tomorrow will be a full day."

Ben hesitated, then nodded.

Silently, they returned to their bedrolls to complete their disrupted slumber.

The next day they moved steadily higher. Ben seemed in good spirits and they made good progress. Q'Jenn occasionally quizzed Ben on the Jedeen support contract and complimented him on how well he had mastered the long document. Shortly before mid-day Q'Jenn abruptly stopped Ben, gestured him to silence, had him drop to the ground and they crept forward to the edge of a clearing. To Ben's delight, there was a pair of bear cubs romping in the meadow, climbing atop a couple of fallen trees, knocking each other off, wrestling and bawling. When the mother bear ambled out of the trees, they carefully backed away and continued their journey.

The rest of the afternoon passed pleasantly enough. Q'Jenn pointed out how the vegetation changed with the elevation and how that impacted the wildlife; Ben discussed future plans for Narelli, and they had a friendly argument about the pros and cons of expanding the road and metal rail networks. Toward the end of the day Ben fell silent, seeming preoccupied. They pushed on until almost sunset to allow themselves a shorter hike the next day. Ben begged off from katas after they ate, pleading tiredness, and they went to bed.

In the middle of the night, Q'Jenn woke again. This time there was no doubt about the source of his disturbance; Ben was moaning and thrashing in his tangled blankets. Q'Jenn quickly went over and tried to wake him, but whatever demon inhabited Ben's sleep world was very strong. For a moment he considered trying to use his limited healing abilities to calm him, but rejected the idea as something that Ben wouldn’t want. Finally he simply held Ben, calling his name, until Ben woke with a gasp, shuddering in Q'Jenn's arms.

"It's alright, Ben, I've got you." Q'Jenn held Ben while his shaking and heaving breaths slowly subsided. "What happened, Ben?"

The moonlight glinted off sweat on Ben's face. He took a slow, deep breath before answering. "It was another dream," he said softly.

"Do you remember what was in it?"

"Only bits and pieces. I saw things… darkness… blood, I think, or maybe it was mud. Rocks, big ones. There was a horse screaming." Ben shuddered again, squeezed his eyes shut. "Gods, I hate these damned dreams," he whispered vehemently. "I wish I could just tear out that part of my head."

"You've had these kinds of dreams before, yes?"

"Oh, yes. Usually about bad things. Sometimes they come true and other times nothing happens. I don't know what's real or what they mean. It's like the finding thing, I can't control it and it scares me half to death."

"Ben, it sounds like you might have had a foretelling. If that is part of your Spirit gift, the Jedeen healers can teach you how to understand and interpret your visions. They are very skilled and have a great deal of experience with all sorts of problems like this."

"No!" Ben thrust away from Q'Jenn, climbed to his feet and staggered over to lean against a tree. "I'm not about to let those bastards near me."

Q'Jenn stood up. "Ben, the healers can help you. They've assisted thousands of other people who have come to us with the same problem you have and I trust them with my life. I don't understand why you don't want their aid."

"Don't talk to me about your damned Jedeen healers." Ben's hands were clenched, his face red with anger. "They're supposed to be so great and do all these miracles. If they're so great, why didn't they save my mother's legs when she had the accident? Why did they just let her lie out there in the woods for days?" Pain ripped his voice into a hoarse whisper. "Why didn't they heal her so she could walk again?"

Shock held Q'Jenn immobile. Where had this venom come from? Was this the source of Ben's dislike of the Jedeen? "Ben, what are you talking about? The accident was severe and her smashed coach had been washed down into dense forest that was extremely difficult to get to. The search party that first found her had only one healer with them and she did the best she could to save your mother's life."

"I've heard about what happened! They should have done more!"

Q'Jenn was starting to have difficulty controlling his feelings. This hit home, hard, very hard. "Is this more of Tol K’Sov's doing? What kind of nonsense was he poisoning you with?"

"Tol may have started it by telling me the truth when I was old enough to start understanding, but it wasn't just his word." Ben turned to face Q'Jenn, his body rigid and angry. "He showed me articles from newspapers and wire reports, then I went out on my own and found more. It's right there in black and white!"

"And what did those articles say?" Q'Jenn's voice was quiet and controlled, a sure sign of his own anger to those who knew him well.

"The Duchess of K'Vangil was caught in a flash flood on her way to the Jedeen clan home holding. The coach was damaged. The Jedeen took hours to get any search parties moving and she laid out there in the mud for two days. Two damned days! And they said…" His voice caught. "If the healers had done their job they could have saved her by cutting the baby out right away." Ben's jaw worked for a moment, then he yelled. "Those damned healers could have saved her so she could walk. I hate them!"

That was more than Q'Jenn could take. "You are young and ignorant. I was there!" He took a step toward Ben; Ben tried to take a swing at him but Q’Jenn easily avoided it. He grabbed the front of Ben's shirt and slammed him into the tree, leaning down face to face. "I was there and that's not what happened." Q'Jenn's voice was soft but intense. "Yes, there was a flash flood. Belessa's coach was swept into a river, smashed up. Her coachmen and aide were dead. The wreckage was almost inaccessible. It was a dreamer like you who saw where she was. I was in the first small search party, five of us and a young healer. We ran our horses almost to death to get to Belessa, clawed through the mud and broken trees." Q'Jenn had to pause as the visions swept back over him.

"If you found her and you had a healer, why didn't he do more?" Ben was still defiant and angry, struggling to get away.

"You don't understand. Belessa was dying, wedged into the wreckage. She prayed to the Spirit to save her baby… begged us to save her baby rather than her. That's what your mother wanted. The healer went into a deep healing trance and for those two days she kept death from taking you and your mother. For all that time I had to watch, keeping them safe, while M'Lora put her own life on the line until more rescuers and healers could hack their way in through the dense woods." Q'Jenn's voice dropped even lower and slower. "For two long damned days M'Lora gave them her life force. Belessa is alive today because of her. *You* are alive today because of that Jedeen healer. When they got Belessa back to the hospital, a team of healers worked for the last three months of her pregnancy to help, but there was too much damage to her legs, and it was all they could do to make sure you stayed alive and were born safely."

Ben had gone quiet and still.

Q'Jenn leaned down even further, almost breath to breath, his eyes boring into Ben's. "It was Belessa who begged the healer to save you. It was the healer's choice to try to save both of you. It was a choice the Spirit called her to make, but it was a choice that cost M'Lora her gift of healing. She burned it out over those two days. She was never the same afterward… she withdrew from life, choosing to serve the Spirit another way by nursing the most grievously ill. She died recently. She was only 45…" Q'Jenn's anger fled and he was empty of all feelings. He dropped his arms, stepped back. "M'Lora used her gift as the Spirit needed her to do, even though it cost her the one thing she valued more than life itself. It's what Jedeen healers do. That is the truth, Ben K’Ni.”

Q'Jenn turned and walked away, no longer caring what Ben thought or did. He wandered aimlessly for several minutes until he came to a small pool fed by an almost invisible stream. He stood staring at the moonlight reflected in its surface.

Time passed without his knowledge. Eventually, the sound of footsteps behind him roused the Jedeen Guardian.

"Q'Jenn?"

Q'Jenn didn't answer.

Ben came up beside him and they both stood silently for several minutes. "I've only ever wanted my mother to be happy, you know," he finally ventured. "Even as a young child I could sense that it hurt her not to be able to wander out among the trees. When I saw those stories… listened to the things Tol told me… I think maybe I felt like it was somehow my fault and I wanted somebody to blame."

"None of it was ever your fault, Ben. Your mother loved you, even before you were born, and she was willing to sacrifice her life if it would have saved you."

"That I do believe, even if I'm having trouble with the rest of it." Ben hesitated. "Was M'Lora a friend of yours?"

"She was my betrothed. When she withdrew from life, she also withdrew from me.”

"I'm sorry."

"Life is what it is." Q'Jenn sighed. "We may as well try to get some sleep. We still have a long walk to the station."

Ben nodded and they returned to their bedrolls to seek what rest they could.

*** ***

Shortly before dawn, Q'Jenn jolted awake. He looked over and saw Ben sitting upright, eyes wide. "Ben?" he called.

Ben took a deep breath, blew it out. "There was another dream." He rubbed the back of his neck. "There was danger. I saw my mother's face."

Q'Jenn got up and went to kneel next to Ben. "Do you remember anything else specific?"

"More rocks. Big ones. There was a sense of urgency." Ben shook his head. "I'm sure there was more, but I couldn't see very clearly. But definitely there was a sense of urgency."

"They should be leaving about now from the port on their way to Station Nine." Q'Jenn thought a moment. "In your earlier dream, you mentioned mud and a horse screaming, right?"

Ben nodded.

"There are no horses on the flatboat, so that probably means there's a threat on land, not on the water." Q'Jenn thought a moment, then looked at Ben. "I know you don't like the dreams, but would you be willing to try something to see if we can get a better vision of where the threat might be?"

"If it will help my mother, I'll do whatever it takes."

"Alright. We're going to try a shared meditation to see if we can pull your dream back. What I need from you is to trust me, to relax and let me in. Can you do that?"

Ben licked his lips, looked into Q'Jenn's eyes. "Yes, but you'll have to show me what to do."

Q’Jen sat down cross-legged, his back against a tree. “Lie here, on your back, your head in my lap and your arms at your sides.” He waited until Ben was in position and then put one hand on each side of Ben’s head. "Just close your eyes and let your mind drift. Don't try to force the dream. Let it come to you." Q'Jenn began softly chanting a meditation mantra as he sought for the Spirit thread that marked Ben's gift. Slowly their thoughts came together, slowly Q'Jenn made tiny nudges to go back further in time to the time of dreams. From the gray mist images gradually presented themselves. Faces, places, dark figures, rocks tumbling, a bay horse tangled in a harness. Belessa K'Vangil, sitting with her back against a boulder, swinging a Guardian's unmistakable sword. Blackness.

Q'Jenn and Ben both shuddered back to wakefulness.

"Gods, what was that?" whispered Ben as he sat up.

"Belessa is in danger. There is no way she would have had a Guardian's sword unless the Guardian was dead." Q'Jenn concentrated for a moment. "I think I know that place where the rocks were sliding down. There's a switchback about halfway up the road up from the landing to Station Nine." He stood up. "Get your gear together. We need to move out quickly."

They stuffed everything in their packs, stopping only to pull out some dried meat to eat along the way. Q'Jenn led them in the most direct route across the hills toward the landing road, aiming to come at it from above. He pushed the pace, but as much as Ben wanted to, he simply could not keep up with a hardened field Jedeen like Q'Jenn. They were forced to take periodic breaks, walking rather than trotting, then speeding up again. Several hours later they finally stopped, looking down on the road. Nothing was visible, but there was a sharp curve not too much further down. They carefully scrambled down to the road itself, really more of a wide dirt path.

Q'Jenn dropped his pack and drew his sword. He hugged the hillside as they cautiously advanced, Ben following several feet behind. It was quiet except for the cawing of some birds and their own footsteps. As they rounded the curve, both men stopped short at the carnage in front of them.

Rocks must have been pushed down from above – there were holes in the road and the edge was torn and ragged. Horses, carts and people from the front of the group had been swept off the road and were strewn on the steep hillside below. Tangled wreckage and a few horses still feebly breathing indicated panic and confusion. Bodies littered a thirty-foot stretch, either smashed by rocks, slashed by swords or pierced by numerous crossbow bolts.

Slowly Q'Jenn and Ben moved along the bloody ground. Q'Jenn studied the signs as they went.

"It looks like the rockslide was first, then probably waves of crossbow bolts. Some of the remaining horses probably dragged carts off the edge. There likely weren't very many people left by the time the bastards came in with swords and close-range crossbows." A little further along they came to a large boulder, bodies piled around it in a circle. Q'Jenn checked some of the bodies. "Those cuts were made by a Guardian's sword." Near the base of the boulder was another body, punctured by dozens of crossbow bolts.

"Senior Guardian M'Gorurk," said Q'Jenn softly as he knelt. "He was probably the last one left." He bowed his head for a moment. He rose and continued checking the ground. "Ben, isn't this your mother's pendant?" He picked up a silver chain with a green stone.

Ben was pale, swallowing often, but he kept his composure as he took the offering. "Yes, it was a wedding gift from Father. She always wears it."

"I don't see her body, so whoever did this probably took her with them." Q'Jenn shook his head. "I don't understand this. There's never been an attack of this magnitude in Narelli, not even a kidnapping. They had to know that taking the Duchess of K'Vangil would bring down the authorities like a nest of hornets."

"There must be something very valuable at stake, but I don't know what it might be. If they're taking her out of Narelli, they could certainly get a very large ransom. But knowing Father, and given all the people they've killed here, there will be a huge effort to find them." Ben looked down at the pendant in his hand. "What do we do next?"

"This had to have happened recently. Blood is still sticky, not dried, and carrion eaters haven't arrived yet. When the Duchess doesn't show up at the station, they will send down a search party. We only have a few choices: we can start cleaning up here while we wait, we can walk up to the station, or we can start tracking the bastards. My choice is to send you up to the station; I doubt there's any more of them around to bother you so it should be safe enough. I'll start tracking them."

"No." Ben raised his head. "If you're going after them, then I'm going with you."

"Your mother charged me with keeping you safe. You've seen how ruthless these people are; they won't hesitate to hurt or even kill you."

"Senior Guardian Q'Jenn, I am sure you are excellent at tracking and killing people. But that is my mother out there and I have one thing you don't." Ben stood very straight and still, his voice resolute. "No matter where she is or where they take her, I can find her."

Q'Jenn looked at Ben for a long moment. "Regardless of what I tell you to do, you're going to follow me, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"Alright." Q'Jenn nodded. "We'll go." He took a few precious minutes to put to sleep the few horses still alive, while Ben gathered a few extra rations from the scattered supplies and refilled their waterskins. Q'Jenn located the point where the gang had left the road to cut across the countryside and they started their pursuit.

While daylight lasted, they were able to track the gang without too much difficulty. Q'Jenn had determined that there were only eleven left after their losses at the ambush site and they were probably taking turns carrying the Duchess. After full darkness fell, Q'Jenn would occasionally turn to Ben to verify the track; with grim determination Ben would touch the pendant and point the way without hesitation.

Across hills, around deep gullies and along narrow tracks in dense woods, they doggedly kept going. They felt they were slowly gaining; late the next afternoon their efforts were rewarded by the sight of a tiny plume of smoke. They worked their way up to the top of a hill and crawled under cover of heavy shrubbery until they had a view of the gang's camp.

"That has to be them," whispered Ben. "I can feel that Mother is very close."

Q'Jenn nodded. "I wonder what they're doing out here. We've actually circled around a lot because the terrain is so rough; we're less than fifteen miles from Station Nine if you could go straight. That waterway is deep enough for those canoes they've got pulled up on the bank, but I don't remember this being on the maps. It probably goes down toward either the lake or Gathow River."

"There are a lot of places in Narelli that haven't been fully explored, so I guess this must be one of them."

"I'm sure you're right." Q'Jenn focused on hammering noises coming from a cave. "I wonder what they're doing in there. I see sacks of something stacked up outside that cave; perhaps they've been mining."

Ben tapped Q'Jenn's arm. "Look, under those trees. There's a woman lying under a blanket; I've seen a man go over twice to look at her. I'll bet that's my mother."

"I think you're right." Q'Jenn watched the camp for a few more minutes. "I count fourteen people that we can see and an unknown number in that cave. I need more information before we come up with a rescue plan. You stay here and I'll go scouting."

"I want –"

"No. We're not going to do anything in broad daylight. Stay here and I'll be back."

Ben acquiesced, not too happily, and settled in to watch.

Q'Jenn worked his way back down and around, patiently watching and waiting, listening and watching some more. He got close enough to pick up some stones from a sack that must have been spilled into bushes before going back to Ben's position.

"That's definitely your mother, but she's not moving much."

"Is she injured?" Ben's voice was anxious.

"Probably, but it won't make that much difference for getting her out since we'll need to carry her anyway."

Ben nodded.

"I found these down there." Q'Jenn handed over two of the stones.

"Hey." Ben held one up to the light, rubbed it hard. "Little gods, do you know what this is?"

"Looks like raw azmurite to me."

"It is. This stuff is worth a fortune. Hell, two fortunes." Ben looked back across the hills. "Since we started putting in that new station, I'll bet there's been more traffic and patrols in this general area, right?"

"Not in this specific area because it's so rough, but in general, yes. It's possible that they've gotten jumpy about being found. Or they could be reaching the end of the azmurite vein and decided to clear out with one last extra prize. It wouldn't be that hard to find out about the Duchess's trip if they have any snoops among the household staff."

"Well, we can worry about the 'why' of it later. How are we going to get Mother out of here?"

They debated back and forth for a while, but in the end Q'Jenn's plan prevailed. They would wait until the middle of the night to sneak down toward the camp; the moon would be high with enough light to see fairly well. Ben was to slip down into the water and swim to the canoes, creep up the bank, punch holes in all of the canoes except one and keep the last one halfway into the water and ready to go. Q'Jenn would work his way around behind the trees where the Duchess was, disable any sentries he found and carry the Duchess to the canoe. While Ben took the Duchess and got her into the boat, Q'Jenn would hold off any opposition, then they would leave in the canoe.

"Just like that, huh?" Ben's voice was decidedly skeptical as Q'Jenn went over the plan again.

"You have a better idea?"

"I suppose not."

"Alright. Let's go get some sleep."

They crawled back down the fill to a bush-covered hollow and took turns napping until two in the morning. They left most of their gear behind and started to their designated positions.

Q'Jenn crept through the trees, circling around behind the camp until he found a position upstream where he could see the canoes. He waited until he saw movement, a flash of a knife that visited each boat except one, before he started forward. He disabled the two sentries he had earlier identified at this end of the camp. There were two others sleeping near the Duchess and three more huddled around a campfire near the mouth of the cave; across the camp were more dark shapes lying on the ground, hopefully all sleeping. Q'Jenn quickly prepared his diversion, which he had not mentioned to Ben, carefully striking a flint to moss, shielding the flare with his hands. He pulled seven arrows from his quiver, set the quiver aside, wrapped a rag around the points of four of them and set them into the small fire. When they were all alight, he rose to his feet and in quick succession he loosed all of the arrows, three at the men at the campfire, one fiery arc into the cave and the last three fire arrows into the other side of the camp. As screams and shouts erupted, Q'Jenn drew his sword and ran forward, slashing at one hapless gang member who got in his way. He snatched up the Duchess and sprinted along the bank to the canoe halfway into the water.

"Here! Get her in the boat!" Q'Jenn thrust the Duchess at Ben and turned around, sword at the ready.

Curses and more shouts signaled that the gang had figured out what was going on and were heading his way. Q'Jenn saw a few of them with swords, more cranking up crossbows. He said a little prayer to the Spirit, focused his concentration and muttered a short blessing for the Jedeen smiths, whose skills would shortly be helping to determine if he lived or died.

Someone threw wood on the campfire, sending the blaze high with a shower of sparks. The first crossbow bolt whizzed toward Q'Jenn, off target, and he flicked it aside. The swordsmen pulled back and yelled for their companions to keep firing. More bolts, mixed with a few conventional arrows, began zinging toward the Guardian. He slowly backed down the bank, his sword flying, barely visible, keeping a protective shield of steel in front of him.

"Let's go!" came the welcome shout of Ben's voice.

Q'Jenn paused a moment as the barrage lessened while they reloaded, leaped backward into the canoe and quickly balanced himself on the heaving vessel, rejecting more incoming bolts while Ben furiously paddled. They kept going until they were well out of sight and sound of the camp.

"I think you can give it a rest, Ben." Q'Jenn carefully sat down in the canoe and began checking on the Duchess.

Ben let his paddle rest at his side as he tried to catch his breath. "How is she?"

"Unconscious, pulse is not good. Broken arm. She's got a big lump on the back of her head. Probably lost a fair bit of blood from those cuts, too." Q'Jenn leaned back, letting one hand rest on Belessa's forehead. "Life force is weak."

"Are you some kind of healer, too?" Ben twisted around to look at Belessa.

"No, not really. I've got enough do some basic things and I can share some of my life force with her for a while, but we've got to get her back to the healers at the lodge."

Q'Jenn took up the second paddle and they both set to work putting distance between them and the camp. They seemed to have succeeded in eluding pursuit, but the waterway twisted and turned instead of taking them straight back to the lake.

An hour later, Ben stopped. "Q'Jenn, I've been taking on water up here."

Q'Jenn set his paddle aside and began checking his area of the canoe. "I've got water back here, too, and it's starting to come in faster. Looks like we took several crossbow bolts at or below the waterline."

They had nothing to bail with, so they paddled faster to make distance until the growing holes let in enough water to threaten to take them down. They pulled into the bank and dragged the canoe up. Q'Jenn lifted the Duchess out and put her on the grass.

"She's still hanging in there, but getting weaker. I'm worried about the blow to her head." Q'Jenn stood up and looked around, checking the position of moon and stars. "The lake should be that way. Our best bet is to head that direction and hope to run into a patrol with horses or boats."

"If the lake's that way, then so is the new roadway," said Ben. "Do you know how far we are from the end of the new construction? If we can get there, I can fire up Balli. I think that's our best hope of getting Mother to the healers in time."

Q'Jenn looked again and calculated in his head. "It would be backtracking a little, but from here it should be about fourteen miles. The first several miles will be up and down some fairly rough country, though." He nodded. "I can carry her and feed some energy to her, but I'll have to focus on the Duchess and it's going to take a lot out of me. Can you keep me on track and get us to Balli?"

Ben knelt and took his mother's hand, then looked up at Q'Jenn. "I want to find her real bad," he said softly. "I'll get us there."

*** ***

It turned into a painful slog through the hills as Q'Jenn pushed himself to his limits. Trotting up hills, around gullies and the long downward trek through thick woods and brush toward the roadway became an exercise in willpower, putting one foot in front of the other, following the gleam of Ben's white shirt through the darkness. Dawn was just beginning to show when they made it to Ben's transporter and Q'Jenn was able to lay his burden down. As soon as Ben had the tarp off, he helped Q'Jenn move Belessa to the bench seat in back and propped up Q'Jenn next to her, covering them both in a blanket.

Q'Jenn didn't remember much of the excruciatingly slow twenty minutes it took for Ben to get the boiler fired up and the transporter ready to roll. The first of the road crew were just coming down the road to start work when Ben took off, waving them out of the way. He didn't remember much either of the trip back except for willing Belessa to stay alive as Ben seemed to be literally flying down the road, blowing his horn furiously at workmen in the road and the security patrol they passed.

Down the road, Balli hissing away and the road noise roaring under them, slowing down just enough not to hit anything as they went past the port area, horn blaring. Up the hill toward the lodge and jerking to a halt, gravel spraying as Ben overshot the paving. People scurrying about, a stretcher appearing from nowhere and the quick procession to the small ward in back of the healer's office. The Duke striding in, people parting before him like a bow wave.

In the waiting room, Q'Jenn and Ben sat and waited. F'Lor and S'Vano both showed up while the Duke was still in with the Duchess and the healers. Q'Jenn gave them a quick report and the location of the illegal mining operation, promising more later; F’Lor suggested they get some rest but both refused to leave, though their heads were nodding. F'Lor sent S'Vano away and made sure both of the men were left undisturbed except for a huge tray of tea, coffee and food.

It seemed an eternity, but was really less than an hour before Mallen, Duke of K'Vangil, slowly walked into the waiting room. Q'Jenn and Ben struggled to their feet.

"Belessa is weak but resting quietly. They've set her arm, stitched up most of the cuts and they’re still treating her for a very bad concussion and blood loss, but the Healers say she should fully recover." Mallen looked at Q'Jenn. "I can see you are tired so I won't ask for details now, but the healer also told me that she would not have lasted more than another hour or two and that you were responsible for her even being alive long enough to get here. I don't know how to thank you sufficiently for saving her."

"I did what the Spirit gave me the strength to do, Your Grace. You should also thank your son, though. Without Ben, we might not have found her at all." Q'Jenn managed a smile. "And without Ben's infernal machine, we could not have gotten her here in time."

"I'm proud of you, son." Mallen's voice seemed to catch. He hugged Ben hard, then nodded. "I'll be with your mother while the healers finish their work." He turned and left.

Q'Jenn and Ben fell back into their seats. There was silence for several minutes.

"So, Senior Guardian Q'Jenn, do you think perhaps there might be a place at Narelli for an engineer and his infernal machines?" asked Ben.

"I think I could be persuaded that that might be a good thing." Q'Jenn nodded slowly. "Tell me, Narelli trustee manager Ben K'Ni, do you think perhaps it might be of some value to find out more about the Jedeen Spirit gifts you seem to have?"

"I think I could be persuaded that it's high time I got my arse in to talk to a healer about this Jedeen Spirit gift business."

They both got to their feet again, looked at each other for a long moment, then smiled and slowly shook hands.

finis


End file.
